Soulmates
by flushroyal
Summary: Iwaizumi hoped to find his soulmate by travelling around the world, wishing that his soulmate also doing his best. Oikawa thought that if there was such a thing as soulmate, his was probably under his/her blankets and had no intention of going out. So theoretically, there was no chance of meeting him outside the walls, then why bothering?
1. Chapter 1

"Stop pushing me guys, I don't want to go out." Oikawa whined to his phone. First, it was winter and he treasured his life. Second, he had a paper that must be handed over within two days. Third, his blankets and a cup of tea were calling him to the bed and there was his laptop, waving happily behind them.

"You're living a life of parasyte Oikawa, your lungs need fresh air." Hanamaki's voice sounded tired.

Oikawa looked out from his window, taking in the only colour outside, grey. The clouds, the buildings even the people were grey. "The air out there is not fresh, it's freezing."

"It was, a week ago. Honestly Oikawa, how did you manage to live without going out for a week?" it was something Oikawa himself wondered too. Class attendances were compulsory in his department, but he managed to organize his schedule by really sensitive calculations. With those calculations, he didn't need to attend classes, using his 12 hours of absence for each.

"I ate things, read things, watched things and slept." he fixed his glasses, today he studied for 3 hours. That meant he should reward himself, probably with two episodes of The Big Bang Theory.

He heard a deep sigh from the other end of the line. "There's a friend of ours we want you to meet."

"Stop matching me up with people I don't know."

"You will never have the people you know. The Doctor has a wife, and I'm already dating with my best friend, so I advise you to start considering the ones you don't know."

It was true. The number of the fictional characters he knew was more than the number of his real, flesh and bones friends. Not that he lacked skills, but he prefered this kind of lifestyle. He was content with it. If there's such a thing as soulmate, his soulmate was probably under his or her blankets and had no intention of going out. So theoretically, there was no chance of meeting him outside the walls, then why bothering?

"Look 'mom', say hello to dad and your friend but I'm not coming. There's a paper waiting for me to write it."

Hanamaki sighed one last time before muttering "If you say so… Don't push yourself too much" and hung up.

 _Compare and contrast poetry of Lord Byron with the poetry of his romantic contemporaries._ He clapped his hands happily, romantic period was his favorite, along with middle ages. However, he got a writer's block even when he was supposed to write a summary.

It was his third year in university, under the department of English Literature. He had everything he could ever want. A very satisfactory department, several scholarships which were enough for him to live without a flatmate, an excellent internet connection and cooking skills which were a little above of the average. A lover would be considered as luxury in his life and he did not want to put his energy for something unpredictable.

His mind wandered back to outside. _The city in grey_ , he thought. It was his favorite season, winter. It suited the city he lived, and the people out. Oikawa practically loved the idea of warming up, so anything about cold would pleasure him. His phone clicked, taking him out of his make out session with winter in his head. He looked down to see a message from their group chat- no, it was a photo. With one hand he grabbed his cup, with the other he touched his screen to see what it was.

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _ahh~~ did you finally decide to adopt?_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _no, it's the guy we want you to meet_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _please let me kill this dork_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _please let me live mom, i'll make you cupcakes_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _besides a step brother like him would be nice….._

He clicked the photo to see it clearly. It was a male, with his age probably. Tanned skin and green eyes, matching with his dark, short hair. His smile was bright, almost too bright for a winter person like Oikawa. He was standing in front of a statue-

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _he is in front of Christ the Redeemer! IN RIO, GUYS! щ(_ _ﾟ_ _Д_ _ﾟ_ _щ)_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _i heard that he hadn't have any relationship before, any serious one_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _he's a traveller_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _Then how do you suppose us to meet_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _I got it! Online! Aww you're such a considerate parents_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _I don't have to stay away from the comfort of my home_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _you're going to rot there oiks_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _Mattsun go out~ it's my private life!_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _no, you go OUT_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _fuckin nerd ԅ(¯_ _﹃_ _¯ԅ)_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _he is a friend of kyotani_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _name's iwaizumi hajime_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _you're free to stalk him_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _he's a friend of the bad deer?_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _No, thanks_

All the time, Oikawa had pitied the poor souls he was matched up with. This case was no different from the other matches. Okay, the boy was definitely good to look at- he was such a sight. However, the looks were the last thing Oikawa searched in a match. First things first, he was imagining someone steady. The guy was a traveller for the god's sake! He imagined himself travelling, taking only the vital things with him. He would have need a mini truck to carry just those. There were his favorite books, shirts and matching cups for each, hair products, his precious pillow Kiki and his lucky volleyball Lulu… maybe his total flat. Yes, he had a thing for travellers, but only for those in time. And space. In addition to that, being a friend of Kyotani was not something he would like in a partner. Kyotani was the most brutal person he had ever met. Plus, the guy was a fan of Twilight saga. His hands started to twitch with dislike. There was no one he hated more than the bad deer- oh no, of course there was, the grocery freak Ushiwaka, but that was a story for later.

He settled down on his bed, hugging his laptop close but stopped suddenly. _Are those guys crazy?_ he asked himself. Why would someone that hot want a date like Oikawa? Of course he was attractive for both boys and girls, but was that all? What did he know about Tooru? _Makki said it's free to stalk…_ He logged in to facebook, typing the name of his match. There was only one user in this name so he clicked. Clicked and started to peer his profile. _Iwaizumi Hajime._

"Hajime. Hajime…" he repeated it to test its tune. "Hajime-kun, Hajime-san, no- it sounds politic, Iwaizumi-san…"

 _Iwaizumi Hajime. Studies Biology in University of … . Hometown, Tokyo. June 08._ There was no more info than those and a mail address attached. Oikawa opened the last photo added by this Iwaizumi guy, and scrolled through his albums. Hanamaki was not lying when he said the guy was a traveller because each photo was from a different city. The poses he gave were mostly funny and creative, it amused Oikawa. He carefully examined all of the photos and the comments below, and felt like watching a documentary about the cities around the world. When he finally saw the first photo posted by now his 158th crush, he surprised to see how quickly he came to the end.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Having to deal with romantic poems was not doing any good to his already emotional personality. _I heard that he hadn't have any relationship before, any serious one,_ Hanamaki said earlier. Oikawa wondered why. It was not hard to imagine a blonde girl, a little shorter than this Iwaizumi, flashing a smile that had same wolt of her boyfriend's, while standing in front of Big Ben. He was sure that Iwaizumi was funny and smart. His comments and descriptions to his photos made Oikawa smile every time. _No_ _doubt he is a gemini._ He seemed also nice, his replies to his adorers were kind. Maybe he should have tried his chance with a message but no, he was not that kind of person. Okay, he was that kind of person but only for the fictional characters. It was a living, breathing human being. More importantly, he had 3 dimension. What if Oikawa run into him while he was getting the garbage out? Other than that, what was he supposed to say?

 _Hello, i'm your stalker but don't be afraid because my friends can't get to see me, even with force, so i mean no harm. You are hot and i want you to know that. Find a short, blonde girl who smile as wide as you do. Then as a thank you present, buy me sunglasses, because i cannot look at your photos directly. Wish me luck in my wormish life inside my books, bye._

Maybe he better just send eighteenth sonnet anonymously. For a secret admirer, that would be elevated and classy. He chuckled at the idea and put out his glasses. His head was about to explode, so he decided to leave this issue to his future self and slept.

Iwaizumi felt his soul leaving his body. His feet were crying because of long hours of walking. Not walking actually but standing, because he visited The Louvre Museum today and it was harder than walking through Great Wall of China. It was his last day in France, he was to be in Tokyo within two days. New semester had started a week ago actually but he decided to skip the first week for the sake of his France trip. It definitely worthed skipping, he found a great chance to visit the places he could not in his previous France tour.

He was on his own, as always. Travelling around the world was his childhood dream. As soon as he became 18, he began working for it. His family was a middle class family, he could not came out and said 'father, mother, please send me abroad for no other reason but my pleasure.' He found some scholarships and worked after his classes to save money. He was happy with his life, his dreams were becoming real with his own efforts. Okay, it was more than becoming real because he visited every place he had wished to see. This was his second world tour.

There was nothing that could hold Iwaizumi down in one place other than his school. He was planning to travel permanently after graduation. There were groups of biologists who were travelling all around the world to examine different species, he wanted to join them. Deep in his heart, he hoped to find the person he was looking for for years in a some place around the world. That hope was also base of his past travels, he wanted to make sure that he did his best to find the true person for him. He was doing his share in this, and hoped that his partner was also doing her or his best. He believed the idea which suggested that all people were once created as couples, and thus, also believed in the existence of soulmates. As for that, he wanted to hurry and find his, wanting to spend rest of his life with the most important person he would hopefully have. However, this also became a concern of his friends, too. Whenever they saw a single spirit, they brought it to Iwaizumi. It was a habit for them, matching him up with everything they found, just like grannies.

 _ **Yahaba:**_ _attract of opposites, think about it_

 _ **Iwaizumi:**_ _guys idk, it sounds wrong_

 _ **Iwaizumi:**_ _i respect that you worry about me but this is getting out of hand_

 _ **Kyotani:**_ _you need someone to teach you how to stay in one place for at least five hours senpai_

 _ **Iwaizumi:**_ _you don't know how either…._

 _ **Yahaba:**_ _that's why i'm here_

 _ **Iwaizumi:**_ _okay i'll just look at him for you, don't expect anything more_

 _ **Kyotani:**_ _*image*_

 _ **Kyotani:**_ _he's the best man of devil himself- be warned_

 _ **Yahaba:**_ _Kyotani Kentaro!_

He smiled at the never ending fight of his friends. Their intention was good, so he did not want to turn them down. The concept of this match was 'attract of opposites'. The opposite of himself would most likely annoy him. He sighed and opened the photo, it was a boy. Tall, charming, warm; those were the first things he felt about the stranger. His hair was well done, his pose was full of self confidence. He shivered suddenly, wondering why. Maybe he was getting cold.

Iwaizumi laid his eyes on the photo one more time. There were packages under his eyes, probably from reading much. Maybe he was exaggerating but something in this guy's smile bothered him, it seemed as forced. He'd have liked to punch that smile off. Maybe he should have called and said him:

 _"Hi, your smile does not fit your pretty face. Please shove it off and put a warm one, but then you would get arrested, because it can be too much for some people to handle. My fault, sorry, i'll count the days for you."_

Of course it was not possible. With the heat of the conversation, his friends forgot to give any information about that guy. No name, no identity, there was only his face. And the fact that he was exact opposite of Iwaizumi. Not for the romantic purposes but it could be nice to know this guy, at least the story behind that smile would have been interesting. He wondered why such a beauty decided to put that kind of smile.

Shaking his head, he closed his phone. It was not Iwaizumi's concern. He seemed like a person to get along with lots of people, so let them worry. There was a long flight waiting for him to home and the only concern he had was that.

Rest of the flight was good, nothing unpleasant happened. Iwaizumi slept during most of it and as soon as he landed, he took a cab to his dorm. His roommate, Yuuji Terushima, was absent almost all the time, he was a party boy. The only times he came to the room was the times he broke up with his lovers. The situation made Iwaizumi glad because he needed long hours of silence to study in the exam weeks. He pulled out his phone to inform Terushima about his return, not really expecting him to be in room. Just for kindness. The moment he allowed data connection, messages and notifications started to rain. He had a lot of friends, but not too close with any of them. There were comments on his latest photos, tons of group messages, and several mails which were sent by the bank he used. Another message from mail took his attention. It had been sent specifically for him. He ignored the rest and opened this mail but before he could read it, the taxi stopped. He paid and got off, muttering a thanks.

Inside of their room was same. The post-it he put on the fridge before leaving was still there, untouched. He took and threw it to the trash can. Slowly undressed himself and headed for bathroom. After a quick shower, he collapsed onto his bed, grabbing the brochure he took from the museum and his tablet. He unlocked the tablet and started to surf. There was nothing new. A post from one of his friends catched his attention, it was a wedding photo. _Wow_. What was with them, marrying that early… He surfed some more then remembered the message he could not read. But before that, he grabbed his phone and ordered a pizza. The last thing he ate was the tasteless sandwich in plane. Returning his attention to the message, Iwaizumi felt his tiredness taking over him.

Or not.

All the tiredness and sleep started to drift off with every word he read. He was not aware the smile crept over his face once the message finished. He quickly re-read, in case he may have skipped a part.

 _Hello, Iwaizumi._

 _I heard that some of my friends are shipping me with you, so I wanted to meet that poor soul by myself. I'm going to stalk you from this point on, if you don't have any complaints. Actually, it does not matter because I'm gonna stalk you anyway. You don't have to reply back, but if I send this message, It means that I want you to. Other than that, don't categorize me as danger please. I am a kind of person who cannot open his books wide, in case they get any damage. I'm such an angel, yes, you can dry your tears. Oh-no!_

 _That was my inner self starting to take control, don't mind him. Sorry for intruding._

There was no name or photo, only a mail address; greenknight23 . Iwaizumi was not a fan of online friendships but an answer wouldn't hurt anyone, would it? Besides, he was not a poor soul and wanted to prove it to that… That whoever. Crossing his legs, he started to think of an answer.

Online world was something beyond his knowledge and interest, despite the considerable amount of posts in his personal page. The relationships which develop in person were his thing. The idea of not being able to use his hands or facial expressions bothered Iwaizumi. He prefered looking at the eyes of the person he was talking to, rather than the dull smileys. His mind wandered back to the last guy Kyotani showed him. His smile too was dull, it was not just right. Originality was one of the principals of him in life; therefore the masks and especially the fake smiles disturbed him much.

Wishing that the person he was writing was as sincere as his message, Iwaizumi started to type. It was obvious that the stranger was not interested in making out with him, so he chose to ignore the part about shipping.

 _Hello, stalker._

 _I already have lots of people stalking me, it is your decision to join them if you want. Besides, If there's a poor soul here, it would be you without doubt, because you can't even open your books wide. I have a habit of sleeping under my books. I mean under their pages, and their smell is something that cannot be replaced. You should try it sometime, it's relaxing. Say hello to your inner voice too, he craves for attention as far as I can say._

Iwaizumi re-read the whole message before pressing 'send'. If he was lucky, this stranger could become a friend to him in this semester.


	2. Chapter 2

Yesterday's Oikawa would be ashamed if he knew what today's Oikawa had done. It was shocking to see how easily the words slipped from his hands. Little taps of his fingers got together against his pride and made their way to Iwaizumi Hajime. His sense of shame was lost since the day he decided to watch _Boku no Pico_ , but that was a story for later. Unlike the shame, his pride was there, standing proud. His pride could be counted as an individual, had its own pride. But there were also his fingers, those pretty, sinful tentacles, never letting him to live peacefully. He glared at his fingers, at those works of satan, and turned them towards his window.

"Why are you like this? I'm looking after you quite well, aren't I? Look outside- there are fingers, forced to go outside, to that battlefield, and freeze! Look carefully- they don't even have gloves!" he said with an over dramatic tone and added "You selfish sinners! I'm wearing gloves even inside the house!"

He grabbed his phone quickly and messaged the people who were responsible for his current state.

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _Someone please cut my fingers off._

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _No, they don't belong to me_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _They are minions of the devil- just like you two_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _i know a group of people who will do it with pleasure_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _What could we possibly do to your not-leaving-the-house-for-a-week self?_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _it is physically impossible_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _They sent a message to Iwaizumi_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _I want to underline, NOT ME_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _the fingers did_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _What did they say, son_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _I know you did nothing wrong_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _Mama's proud ＼_ _(*T▽T*)／_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _congrats on your first step on the way of becoming an actual human being_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _daddy is too proud_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _Stop making fun it_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _What am I supposed to do_

 _ **Oikawa:**_ _What if he replies back_

 _ **Matsukawa:**_ _that's what social platforms for, oiks_

 _ **Hanamaki:**_ _Messages are sent to get replies back_

Oikawa was about to reply but saw the icon of his jmail upon the screen. He left the fantastic duo alone to look at the message. He held his breath, taking his right hand up, muttered a "don't mess the things up".

There were two different messages; one from his drama club, the other from Iwaizumi Hajime. He quickly opened the latter.

 _Hello, stalker._

 _I already have lots of people stalking me, it is your decision to join them if you want. Besides, If there's a poor soul here, it would be you without doubt, because you can't even open your books wide. I have a habit of sleeping under my books. I mean under their pages, and their smell is something that cannot be replaced. You should try it sometime, it's relaxing. Say hello to your inner voice too, he craves for attention as far as I can say._

He read it again and again, and again and again, and changed his idea about Iwaizumi's kindness. The guy was rude! Oikawa felt his anger rise, with every word he read, wondering what kind of neandertal tortures his books by sleeping under them. That meant war. He started to type.

 _Hello, Iwa-chan._

 _I'm going to call you that from now on. The reason of it is the inexperienced state of mind of yours. I'm taking the wheel and as a true bookworm, going to educate you. First, I have a name and prefer to be called by it, which is Oikawa Tooru. Second, you need to understand what is the meaning of the existence of the books. They are meant to be read. I don't know if you noticed but there are words and therefore sentences in it. We, normal humans, use blankets when we sleep. I think these are enough for today, If you happen to wonder anything about those up, you may ask._

 _Plus, my inner self got hurt from your words, how rude!_

He considered to add some smileys because his words might hurt Iwaizumi, If he read it wrong way. However, the guy's rudeness hit him so hard that Oikawa thought of this as a payback. Remembering his attitude towards the fragile beings like books, Oikawa hit the send button as aggressively as he used to hit the volleyball in high school.

He went to Shiratorizawa Academy until college but deciding that he could no longer bear there, he left without looking back. there was no photo or memory of the school except for the volleyball he had. Volleyball was the only thing that kept him there for more than ten years. He positioned as a setter, a really good one. However, he was not a genius who talented naturally, the only thing he had was his hard work. Well, considering the other Shiratorizawa members, he always felt incompetent, in spite of his passion towards the volleyball, towards standing in the court. Oikawa shrugged the unpleasant memories, memories of him practicing from early mornings to late nights, practicing so hard that his hands and ankles aching, yet none of them were sufficient enough to be the best.

He closed down his computer, which happened rare, and made himself a cup of tea. There was a play he should have read, so he took the cup and the play and got under his blankets. _God, comedy of manners is such a torture,_ he sighed.

Iwaizumi believed in the theory about fictional characters, which suggested that they really exist somewhere in universe. That meant Godzilla really exist out there, and even the idea of it made him excited, and at some nights, he couldn't get any sleep because of making out plans to take down the Godzilla in case he were to came across it. Yes, it sounded impossible but being ready for a such thing wouldn't hurt anyone. This was his ultimate secret and he put all his effort to task of hiding it. Tonight, he fought it again for the millionth time in his dream but something strange happened; Godzilla smiled creepily at him then he woke up.

He could not figure out exactly when or how much he slept. He liked days like this. Iwaizumi was a person who lived spontaneously, he didn't favoured plans or alarms or the things happened in regular basis. It did not mean that he was not punctual, he managed to do his things on their time.

He got up and looked at his schedule, his tuesdays and fridays were free, rest of the days were full with his third year classes. He was looking forward to take Genetics and Insect Behaviour classes, which he would be taking for the first time this semester. Arthropods were simply amazing him and he wanted to develop his studies on that subject. Hajime sometimes wished that the one who woke up as an insect had been him rather than Gregor Samsa. Okay, the story was about alienation to self but he couldn't help, he was a biologist and that would be one hell of an experience to him. He rolled to his back on bed and looked at the ceiling.

A notification sound reached his ears and with that he remembered why he had slept with his phone under the pillow. Normally, he would just thank the strangers that appreciated him but he decided to go for a proper response this time. There was something about the message that made him smile and annoyed at the same time and he wanted to learn more about the guy.

Quickly grabbing his phone, he felt a warmness creeping all over him. The stranger replied back. He smiled and tapped the message, and his smile began to decline with every word. The warmth he felt was also leaving, apparently it got confused in the first hand when it decided come to Iwaizumi.

 _Arrogant bastard._ He admitted something about himself in the first message but what he got back? An angry response from a book worshipper. Iwaizumi himself too, respected books, but he also wanted to make use of them in every way he could.

He locked his phone and was about to ignore the stranger then he realized something. _Oikawa Tooru._ He gave his name. Iwaizumi started to search for his tablet which was nowhere in sight. Hurriedly, he tried to got up from the bed and well, tried. His foot caught the blanket and he stumbled forwards. Cursing the blankets while trying to get rid of them, he noticed his tablet right next to his pillow, where he must have left before sleeping. He laid back and kicked the blankets one last time, then grabbed the tablet and opened facebook. He typed the name, there were three different Oikawa Tooru. He was about to click the first one when he noticed the profile photo of the third one. It was familiar but he could not exactly figure out from where, so ignoring the first two, he went for the third Oikawa.

Studying English Literature in University of Tokyo. Aha! It was the guy he was looking for. No wonder he was such a book admirer. He clicked the profile photo and it hit him that moment that he was the same guy Yahaba tried to set him up with. It was a self taken photo with Oikawa smiling wide and making a peace sign. He was wearing a turquoise hoodie, written 'I don't believe in humans' in front. Iwaizumi smiled, not at the smile the guy giving, but at the hints of his personality in background. Space nerd, a cup with little volleyballs printed on surface, pair of glasses near a mountain of books: _Titus Andronicus, Hamlet, Wuthering Heights, Pride and Prejudice, Canterbury Tales, Oliver Twist, Heart of Darkness_ and so much more.

There was no more photo and he wondered why. The guy was good looking, almost pretty for a male. His hair was well made when compared to Hajime's short messy hair. His eyes were matching with his chocolate brown hair, and contrasting the paleness of his skin. Iwaizumi hold his hand up, looking at the difference between their skins. His was naturally tan but there was also darkness came with exposition to sun for long hours of trips. On the other side of the screen, the guy's skin was nearly milk white, as if he had seen a ghost before taking the photo. No- this was a kind of guy who would scare the ghost itself, so he got his thought back. _He is the best man of devil himself- be warned._ Kyotani was a nice guy, what caused him to comment harsh like this made Iwaizumi wonder.

He took his phone back to reply, with every intention to re-build the respect they murdered only with the first three messages.

 _Hello again, Oikawa._

 _I'm going to ignore the trash you sent me just before and opening a new page, okay? I have my ways in life and you have yours, let's try not to get in each other's ways. I also hope you stop calling me like you did before. I heard about you from my friends before and know that you use facebook so i'd like to talk there if you don't mind because this way i'm feeling like i'm chatting with my professors._

 _I didn't mean to hurt your inner self too, so can you please pass my apologies to him?_

Oikawa screamed into his pillow when he read the apology. Iwaizumi's kindness made his insides twist, not in an unpleasant way. His inner self was spiralling, like the times he read _Wuthering Heights_ or he ate milk bread.

He had just been finished with the play once he saw the message, which had been sent only six minutes ago. He immediately typed an answer, hoping to catch Iwaizumi online. Today was Oikawa's last day in home; by tomorrow, he was supposed to go classes for a week.

 _Hi, Iwa-chan._

 _No I'm going to keep that nickname, because you called my message trash. Other than that, I join your idea about chatting with professors, you can add me there if you want._

 _Plus, my inner self will be throwing a party in the honor of your kindness tonight._

He hit the send button this time happily. He got up and picked up the books he left here and there, there was a mess whenever he decided to study. The subjects he studied were related all, causing a big trash of books and photocopies scattered around.

A sound of vibration caught his attention. Oikawa put his glasses on and went back to find an short answer and a friendship request. Accepting the request, he clicked his message box, waiting for Iwaizumi to be available. He felt nervous when he saw Iwaizumi typing.

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _thanks for accepting the request_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _hi, by the way_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Hey_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _You're welcome._

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _I hope i'm not keeping you busy here…?_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _no- this is my last day off before school, i was planning to sleep through it_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Okay, same here._

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Except for the sleeping part though..._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _i just got back from France_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _sleep was the only thing in my mind on my way back_

Oikawa narrowed his eyes, wasn't this guy mentioning the word sleep too much? As if he wanted to sleep... If that was the case, Oikawa would let him because he didn't intend to be a burden to people, especially to ones he'd just met.

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Man.. You go get some sleep then._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _it can wait till night i guess_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Okay then…_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _How was France?_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _France was same as it is in the photos_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _hot, sunny, reeking history and art_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Awww_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _My inner self is melting inside._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _isn't he suppose to prepare for party?_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _He is such a talented young man, Iwa-chan._

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _He can prepare for the party and join our conversation at the same time._

As soon as he sent the messages, he regretted his choice of words, he was not supposed to buddy-talk with a stranger. He should have kept the nickname to himself, at least for an hour or so but no, his fingers were unstoppable once they decided to write something. Furthermore, he felt close to Iwaizumi for a reason he could not yet understand, like there had never been boundaries between them, like they knew each other for years. The message sound took him from his thoughts.

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _you should take that nickname and leave us alone with your inner self_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _How rude!_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Are you two going to stab me in back?_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _I'm forbidding you to interact. Besides that nickname fits you._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _oh no!_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _our plan has been figured out so early!_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _how come you know it fits, you barely even know me_

 _I, too, ask myself this,_ he muttered. He really did not know the answer, he just got the sense that it would fit, and there was a tone in it, plus he did not like being formal. _Nickname confirmed._

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _¯\\_(ツ_ _)_/¯_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _I don't know_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _It just fits well, kind of melodic._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _can your inner voice do something about it, we are getting along with him_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Noo he too likes this name._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _sorry for the mistake, it should be 'we WERE getting along'_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Rude…_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _You were talking about France?_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _*image*_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _i visited the Louvre most of my time in there_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _what about you? I just know that you're studying literature_

He clicked the photo and froze. The photo was probably taken instant because there was a bed and light which Oikawa guessed it came from the computer. Although the focus was on the brochure of the museum, the place it stood was impossible to not to notice, which happened to be well tanned, and muscled, thighs of Iwaizumi. There should have been a religion devoted to those thighs, Oikawa took a mental note to search for it later.

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _(„• ֊ •„)_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Here are the keywords for 'An Introduction to Me': literature, space, volleyball, mangas, sparkles, angels, glory._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _from which part are we responsible in midterm?_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _I'm trying to make it easy Iwa-chan!_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Sparkles and glory part will make you pass by the way._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _no_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _those were the only parts i cannot quite relate with you_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _I wonder how you do relate the angels part…_

Oikawa winced at his flirtatious reply. Yet it was his nature, he couldn't help it, whether it was a girl or boy, he got easily cheesy. He sighed and waited for an answer, which came quickly.

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _enough talking today_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _it was pleasure to meet you_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _An embarrassed Iwa-chan is cute._

Maybe he should have stopped reading fanfictions too much. He was using cliche lines, almost without thinking, automatically. Iwaizumi seemed like a nice guy, maybe Oikawa's words were disturbing him but he could not do anything about it as he was too kind. The idea terrified Oikawa, but then he relaxed because Iwaizumi showed his 'unkind' self to him more than once already and he believed that if anything had disturbed him, Iwaizumi would have told. However, it had been ten minutes since his last message yet there was no reply. He couldn't help but worry, and decided to press.

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Iwa-chan please don't leave._

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _o(╥﹏╥_ _)_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _i went to make a coffee_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _a worried tooru is cute too_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _awww (*´∇｀_ _*)_

Iwaizumi's words made Oikawa scream into his pillow again, it was a remarkable success, two times on the same day. Very few people used his first name while calling him, let alone using it in the same sentence with the word 'cute'.

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _no it is horrifying_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _ewww_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _did you sit on your keyboard accidentally by any chance?_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _what mad-_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _RUDE!_


	3. Chapter 3

Iwaizumi was feeling light and excited; getting to know Oikawa was like getting to know a new city for him. They talked more and more because of the difference between their lives. Oikawa was the exact opposite of him, yet there was also closeness he felt when they were talking. Being able to communicate as if they had long been friends made Iwaizumi glad, made him feel pleasant. A friend like Oikawa would be interesting for him, but he could not manage a life like that himself. There were so many places in world to explore, and instead of seeing those, the opposing idea of never getting out of the house made him uncomfortable. Of course there were also so many things that could be learned without going out but… it was not his thing.

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _so fifteen days you say?  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _who took the garbage out then?  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _that is crazy_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Exactly, after 10 hours and 13 moments, it will be officially fifteen days.  
_ _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _We leave the garbage out our doors._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _i can travel Europe in fifteen days_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Now THAT is crazy Iwa-chan!  
_ _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Aren't you getting any sleep?  
_ _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _How are you taking care of yourself?_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _i prefer hostels when I'm alone but there have been plenty of times that we slept on streets…_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _That's horrible_

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _no, we call it adventurous, besides seeing the same four walls for fifteen days is horrible._

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _We call it relaxing.  
_ _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _You are not all alone then?  
_

Iwaizumi did not know how to answer that question. Yes, he was not alone physically, and saying that he did not have friends would be a really selfish thing but he did not completely feel full either. The reason of his travels was to find the true person for him after all, however he didn't feel like sharing it with a person he knew only for few hours.

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _i have some friends from different countries  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _for example there's a good friend of mine in Turkey, from Istanbul  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _whenever I go there, he provides me a place to stay  
_  
 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _So you've also been in Turkey...  
_ _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Tell me something about there._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _it was a beautiful city, Istanbul I mean  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _one night, while we were listening an album of Bring Me The Horizon in car, in Fatih, a policeman stopped us  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _and asked that if something was wrong because they had heard some screams_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Noo  
_ _ **  
Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _yes, I have never been that ashamed in my life, from then on I started to listen.. uhm… let's say calmer songs_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _You're really amusing Iwa-chan!  
_ _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _I cannot say the same thing for your music taste though..._

 _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _i must join you in there i guess_

 _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Are there any stories like that one?  
_  
 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _there is another, it was when i was in South Korea- about two years ago.  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _i was walking across the river Han  
_ _ **Iwaizumi Hajime:**_ _it was night time and i was really tired. Then i saw a girl on one of the benches, crying hysterically. At first I was planning to ignore her but then i went next to her and asked what was wrong or at least if there was anything i could do_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _And that's the story about your never ending kindness?_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _it might have been, if the girl hadn't yelled at me about destroying her beautiful moment. i realized that they had been shooting of a scene for a TV drama when i saw angry cameraman and rest of the cast watching me intently behind the bushes._

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _p(´_ _｀｡_ _q)_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Did you learn the name of the drama?_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Who was the main actor?_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _You're such a lucky soul, Iwa-chan….._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _no- they threw me out immediately_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Have you seen one of those handsome Korean boys then? Park Jimin maybe?_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Korea is the demo place of heaven on earth._

Iwaizumi furrowed and crossed his arms, wasn't this guy being a bit cheesy? Okay, he was this cheesy from the moment they started to chat and Iwaizumi did not find it irritating up until now but… he prefered Oikawa to keep his fangirling to himself. Maybe not even to himself, fangirling was a bad thing for heart as far as Iwaizumi knew. Not that he was jealous of the attention Oikawa giving or so, he was just thinking of his newest friend's well being, as every true friend.

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _they looked very human to me_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _no halos for real_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _You know what I meant!_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _so did you name your walls? after spending so much time with them, they deserve it_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Avoiding the subject like a pro, huh, Iwa-chan? I'm impressed with your ability._

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _I named them after Ninja Turtles._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _you didn't_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Sure, I did. At first I considered naming them after my favorite tragic heroes: Oedipus, Hamlet, Faustus and Macbeth.  
_ _ **Oikawa Tooru:**_ _Then I thought that It would be too depressing to look at them._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _my heart sank just with the mention of their names_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _but i heard that Faustus guy for the first time to be honest_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Among all of them, he is the closest one to me._

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _I have a crush on him for two years._

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _He is hungry for knowledge, he even sells his soul for the sake of it._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _like Dean sold his soul out for Sam?_

Iwaizumi felt ignorant and unsophisticated, considering the wide knowledge of Oikawa on both the literature and the pop-culture. He liked to make references to the shows or books while talking yet he could not do it all the time because there was no one who could fully understand him. Here was this guy, Oikawa, probably knowing everything he knew and more, and Iwaizumi was happy.

However.

Almost fifteen minutes passed and there was no reply. Iwaizumi himself was slow when it came to chat but Oikawa was pretty quick while they were talking and he began to wonder if he said something strange. There were two groups of people; the first group were comprised of the ones who thought before they talked. The second group, to which Iwaizumi belonged, were the ones who thought after they talked. He was doing his best to stay calm and kind as always but silence of Oikawa was worrying him.

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _like Dean sold his soul out for Sam?_

Meanwhile, at the far end of the conversation, Oikawa was on the verge of crying. He grabbed his phone to consult to his parents, because this was a case he could not shoulder alone. His eyes were teary, and hands were shaking as he typed.

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Mom, Dad,_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I need to ask you a really important question._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It is leave-whatever-you-are-doing-and-pay-attention-to-me-at-once kind of important._

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _no we did not take your harry potter dvds, stop bothering us_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I know you took them._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Nobody is allowed to enter my home other than you two._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _But i'm not here to question their sudden absence._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _What should i wear in our wedding?_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _wear?_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _wedding?_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _our?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Iwaizumi proposed to me!_

 ** _Oikawa:_**

 ** _,_** ** _､_** ** _,_** ** _､_**

 ** _(˘v ˘_** ** _)_** ** _っ_**

 ** _(_** ** _っﾉ_**

 ** _Ｊ_**

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _i'm taking none of your shit today oiks_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _mama is on the line_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _tell me what happened_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _as shortly as possible_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Why on the earth should i cut the most romantic thing in my life short?_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _because we should continue ou_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _parenting_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _continue our parenting, my son_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I disturbed something, aren't I?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _( `_ _ิิ_ _ิ_ _)_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _you were telling the most romantic thing that ever happened to you_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It is iwa-chan..._

 ** _Oikawa: re:Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _like Dean sold his soul out for Sam?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It is the last message he sent._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _(*´˘`*)_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _(_ _ノ_ _ಠ_ _益_ _ಠ_ _)_ _ノ_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _i swear that i'm going to tear your nerdy head off your body in one of those days you step out of your cave_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _Tooru dear, it is just a Supernatural reference, you know_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _people do things like that_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _so please fuck off_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _or i'll have to help Issei to hide your body_

Oikawa stuck his tongue out at the messages. They understood the references every single time but could not quite comprehend the holiness of them or the fandom life itself. He returned to his laptop, to his precious Iwa-chan.

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Iwaizumi._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _Oikawa._

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _IWAizumi_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _Oikawa?_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _I'd gladly sell my soul for you._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _uh.. thanks?_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _but i doubt you have one on the first hand_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _ಠ_ ___ _ಠ_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _why am I target of such a rude behaviour?_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _because you insulted my habit of sleeping under the pages_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Aha!_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Thanks for reminding that- I was about to waste my pure soul for a primitive._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _exactly! your civilized self can't understand a natural pleasure like that_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _they smell of ink and woods_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _and sleeping under them is lulling._

Oikawa could not even finish reading the messages. His eyebrow twitched with the annoyance towards sick pleasure, maybe Iwaizumi was a sadist.

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _You are abusing them Iwa-chan!_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _*image*_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _i regret nothing_

Oikawa took a deep breath, hold his left hand up his face in case and clicked the image. It was blurry due to the lack of light and there was a book- _Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?_ He couldn't see the name of the author and wondered what kind of book it is. But before that, horror began to spread his face gradually with the painful realization, the book was wide open, _wide,_ and under there was a head, without doubt, belonged to Iwaizumi. There were scratches on it's surface and corners of the pages were wrinkled. Oikawa winced in pain.

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _You villain!_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _└(T_T;)┘_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _one day, you will wish that you have tried it earlier_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _i'd defend it more but i have to go now_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _uh okay then?_

Oikawa could not figure out what to say. He wanted Hajime to stay, he wanted to talk more, to learn more about him. Iwaizumi was right when he said Oikawa's inner self had been craving attention. Makki and Mattsun were there whenever he needed to talk, but Iwaizumi was a fresh air for him now. Forcing him to stay was not an option, so he unwillingly decided to go with it.

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _it was nice to talk_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _i'm not worried that i'm leaving, because you said you'd keep stalking me_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _i'll count on you with that_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _I honestly don't know what to say._

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _I'll gladly stalk?_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _not just stalk but message me again_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _dork_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Okay, I'll both stalk and message….._

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _see you soon then_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _See you, take care._

Oikawa smiled and cursed at the same time at his messages. Cursed because when he was forced to do something he did not want, his attitude became weird. Even in the messages. Smiled, because Iwaizumi promised to talk again. Not promised, okay, but he mentioned it, and it was enough for Oikawa to be happy. He had been smiling for some time when he saw a new message.

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _btw, would it be weird for me to ask for your number?_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Iwa-chan!_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _i'm sorry, wrong person_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _i did not mean to send you_

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime:_** _don't bother please_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _*number*_

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _Don't be mean, Iwa-chan._

 ** _Oikawa Tooru:_** _That nickname suits you well, stop struggling already._

Iwaizumi was in shock, asking for the numbers of people he barely knew was not an everyday habit of him but he also couldn't help his fingers do the thing he normally wouldn't do. Oikawa seemed like a good guy and Iwaizumi hated to talk his friends through facebook, those reasons were enough for him to ask. Furthermore, they got along although they were living different kind of lives. He had no prejudice towards the people he had met online, besides Oikawa couldn't be counted as a total stranger in this case due to their mutual friends. After the justification in his head, he asked Oikawa for his number, he seemed to like Iwaizumi if not being extremely nice. He was nervous, not knowing why, it was not his first time in asking a number of a friend. _A friend._

His state of nervousness continued until he saw Oikawa's reply. ' _Iwa-chan!' Well, damn you Oikawa_ , he wanted to say but all he managed to type was denial. He wondered what he possibly did wrong to deserve this nickname. He regretted their argument about books, not the habit of himself, but the situation as a whole: because it was his attitude that made Oikawa to use this name on the first hand. He hoped that it would vanish in time…

They talked without any strange feelings or at least it was like that on the Iwaizumi's side. Usually, when he was talking to people he just met, he felt uneasy and there were plenty of times when he did not know what to say or how to keep the conversation going. This time was different, it grew naturally and there were also things in his mind that he wondered about Oikawa. He could not help it, his lifestyle and personality attracted Iwaizumi to no end. Again, it was like that according to him, he wondered what was it like for Oikawa. And well, here was something more to ask him.

Iwaizumi closed down his tablet and stood up, so much was waiting for him to get done. First, he was looking forward to seeing his friends, he was away for four months raw and could not find a chance to greet them yet. He had laboratory on mondays which would took most of his day. Most importantly, that evil force in himself who listened _Rammstein_ for dear life, tricked him to take a german class and he was supposed take them also on mondays, in the afternoons, which would probably turn into a torture because of the short and dark days of winter and tiredness of being out from the laboratory.

As far as he knew there was no one that took the german class with him, no one he knew. It was fine by him, he had no hardships on melting into the unknown crowds. His mind wandered back to Oikawa, he was too a stranger about a day ago. He was content that they exchang- _wait no!_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Guys he is either being mysterious_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _or forgot to give me his number_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Why don't you reply?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Mama_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Mattsun…_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I hate you guys_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Always making out when i need you most_

 ** _Oikawa: (╥_** ** _﹏_** ** _)_**

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Okay then i'm going to make out too…..._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _With my bed!_

Oikawa was both offended and thankful to their recklessness at the same time. He was not sure if he really wanted to talk about it- there was nothing to talk about it indeed, but at least he expected a proper response. He was not a person going around and giving his number to random strangers. Iwaizumi had a somehow reliable aura, and Oikawa did not think twice.

Oikawa was a happy man, he liked to explore new people and every aspect of their personalities. Back in high school, those times in hell, some of his 'friends' accused him of digging their lives to use it against them in future. No. He was not that kind of person, and those said friends terrified him. They were the reason of his paranoiac behaviour towards the society itself. He just could not trust people, and the world itself disgusted him, so he found the peace he was looking for within the four walls of his home and of course, in literature. He felt alive when he was reading a play or a novel or even a poem, he felt alive when he listened to a song, not necessarily with lyrics, the melody itself was enough for him in most of the times.

Oikawa was a gifted man, he read people like he read his books and it helped him to put on different masks for different people. He was that friendly and attractive boy in the class that everybody knew, but did not know anything about him in real.

Oikawa was also a unlucky man, because now he had to wait Iwaizumi to contact him. He called Oikawa dork, but the hugest dork here was Iwaizumi himself. He sighed, it was his destiny with his close friends, they always turned out to be dorks, there was no escape in it. Look at Makki and Mattsun, they became the king and the queen of the meme world.

Sound of his phone took the attention of this happy, gifted and unlucky man from his daydream about the fantastic duo's meme kingdom. It was a message from an unknown number and his eyes shine with excitement.

 ** _From: Unknown_**

 _hey, i'm sorry i forgot to give my number in change, my absent-mindedness_

 _-Hajime_

He wasted no time and replied back. He wondered if he was being too playful, but again it was Iwaizumi himself that created this situation, so he needed to shoulder the consequences of it.

 ** _To: Iwa-chan_**

 _Uh, I could not quite figure out who you are, I'm sorry._

 ** _From: Iwa-chan_**

 _there's no way you could forget about the guy you were talking to for hours till now, oikawa_

 ** _To: Iwa-chan_**

 _You also happened to know my surname, strange, how can I not get myself remember?_

 ** _From: Iwa-chan_**

 _iwa-chan, okay, i'm iwa-chan- i'm sorry_

 ** _To: Iwa-chan_**

 _Iwa-chan! Why didn't you say it earlier?! It's not a problem, you know._


	4. Chapter 4

Iwaizumi laughed at the long academic paper Oikawa sent him. _This nerd wrote a huge essay on his theory about 'Abduction of William Shakespeare; Sense of Art From The Outer Space'._ He said he also made a fifty minutes presentation of the paper in their conference _'Literature and Science'._ Oikawa was dead serious about this issue, and it amused Iwaizumi because It was a pure and innocent belief and Oikawa sounded like a five year old child when he was telling about his theory. He sent a long voice recording about it to Iwaizumi, and yes, now that they exchanged their numbers, they started to send each other photos and short voice recordings. The voices were mostly Oikawa's, he was too lazy to create a proper message that he recorded and then sent. It setted a kind of warm atmosphere between them and thus was fine for Iwaizumi.

They had been talking for a week now and yet the things that they wanted to share with each other did not seem to come to an end. One topic was leading them to another, then another, and their free times were passing with chatting. Their lives were like the different sides of a coin, yet it was interesting to getting to know the other side.

They learned that they were going to the same university for three years, however, their departments were again hella different from the other. While Iwaizumi was making autopsy to the bugs, Oikawa was reading his eyes out, he was too making autopsy in his field maybe, autopsy to the books and the articles.

Iwaizumi was internally glad that they had a mutual friend, Kyoutani. They had been friends since they took a joint course about chemicals. However Oikawa seemed to know him even before the university, probably from high school. And by the way-

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _by the way where did you go in high school?_

Iwaizumi himself went to Seijoh, which could be considered as one of the leading schools in their area. He loved his school, there had been nothing that bothered him in there. He was the ace of the volleyball team and thus, very popular among the girls, but that was then, now, he was not popular anywhere and had no intention of being so. He was fine with his current life, everything was going according to his plans although he he hated plans. But planning things and doing them accordingly was something good, something normal and he was one of those people who choose being normal over being happy.

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I went to Shiratorizawa Academy._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Bweh_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _it is one of the top schools in japan you ungrateful bastard_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _The school itself is not enough to be grateful for some people._

No "Iwa-chans" or smileys, then Oikawa was serious. Iwaizumi could not understand why Oikawa got serious about it. As far as he learned this this week, Oikawa was confident and lively in every issue they had talked.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i'm sorry if i said something wrong_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _No Iwa-chan, my bad, I basically hated my high school years but you are right, it is the best school in our neighbourhood._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you should have come to Aoba Johsai_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Maybe I should have…_

Iwaizumi wanted to break the tense air between them and then an idea hit him. He scrolled through their conversation and there it was. Oikawa had once sent him a screenshot of his favorite playlist, which consisted of six songs only. He looked at them and picked one, then got up and went to their extra closet, where they kept some of their useless stuff and took out his guitar. It had been long time since he last played it but he was sure that he did not forgot how yet.

It was sunday, therefore he had all day and room to himself. As there was nothing he was planning to do, spending the day for one of his friends was not a big deal to Iwaizumi. Terushima came to their room once throughout the week and it was to replace his dirty clothes with their new ones. Other than that there was only Kenma's room next to theirs, and he was not the kind of person to be disturbed by a guitar so it was safe to play.

He looked to the cords of the song he was going to play and watched them carefully for several times. He learned to play guitar when he was in India. One of his friends had a local rock band in there and taught Iwaizumi to how to play it. He spent a month with him and his band, it was one of the most precious travels of him. He promised to play with them when they were to come Japan and he honestly was looking forward to it. He sometimes wished that instead of his classmates, his own friends from different countries had been there with him. But again, they were precious and being away was one of the things that made them more than important to Iwaizumi.

His mind flew back to his own high school years, which could be counted as one of the descriptions of the word 'normal'. Actually, that word could be applied to his whole life, there was no more or less than normal. He loved extreme situations and spontaneous events, although they had nothing to do with him, never. He crossed his own lines, and was a perfect son with his decisions according to his parents. And his friends. And rest of the people around him. Iwaizumi sighed, he was, too, young and wanted something, anything to happen to him. Whatever it might be, it would make him happy, at least he would be sure that someone up there was still giving a damn about him. He didn't know if he felt sorry for Oikawa in this case, because he perceived misfortunes as good things. It shouldn't have been that way, he felt sorry that he did not feel sorry, and the only thing left for him was to cheer Oikawa up as he was the one that reminded him his bad memories or whatever.

He thought of recording a video for Oikawa while playing the song, but an idea flashed in his head. He could use this chance to make a video call, he was wanting to do it for some time. He believed that they constructed enough trust for it. Besides he would be able to see Oikawa's reaction directly that way, though he did not know why it mattered to see. Iwaizumi shrugged and focused on what his hands were doing for that moment.

Oikawa wondered if Iwaizumi did really have to ask about his high school. He was doing his best to forget about the memories but they kept rousing up everywhere. He liked Iwaizumi, really did, it was fun to talk with him, but with a little mention of his bad days all the fun blew up. They had been talking for a week, or more than a week if the first messages were counted, and their conversation did not bore him yet. He was not sure which one of them made the most talk, the amount curiosity was equal in both of them. However, his good mood hit rock bottom, he could not help, and also did not mean to be rude, but he reacted to Iwaizumi's message quick, so quick that even his own mind did not manage to keep up.

He considered for a moment to end the conversation, but that would be brutal, contradicting with the gentleman identity he had grown into. Oikawa was not such a person, he treasured every one of his friends and their ideas, but when it came to being open up himself, he just could not do that. He saw himself as a mechanism in this world, whose aim was to understand its surroundings perfectly and make them work in harmony. In this scenario, the mechanism, Oikawa, was supposed to be flawless. There was no room for a breakdown, yet he gave a signal of a possible breakdown to Iwaizumi, who was no more but a stranger about a week ago.

He could do something to cover up his break, but for now, Oikawa just wanted to make himself disconnect, not only from the web, but also from the world, which meant film time! He clapped his hands, put his phone and books aside, and opened one of the films he downloaded for emergencies. _Train to Busan._ He was hoping to not to see any romance, he wanted to watch pure action to make his systems work without any trouble. Getting under his blankets, he considered texting to Iwaizumi but no. _Maybe after the film_ , he thought, first he needed to relieve his nerves.

Oikawa has two classes on monday but he was planning to skip one of them for the next day. Nothing was wrong with his german and he wondered for what good he had to took more classes of it, but it was compulsory on his program. He had no intention to attend any of the classes indeed, he was ready to write an essay on any subject in german to prove himself to the instructor. Other than german, there was his Shakespeare class and they had been assigned to read _Titus Andronicus_ for the course. With the comfort coming from having read it already, he concentrated on the film.

Zombies had always attracted him, just like aliens did. He was interested in different life forms, let's say different 'intelligent' life forms. It was hard to understand them and their motives and Oikawa liked it hard. He was lost in his fantasies about him trying to create a kind of communication with the aliens that just landed in earth when his phone buzzed.

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _i'm forced to write this_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _you are invited to our place for dinner tonight_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _my favorite human is trying a new recipe_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Come on dad..._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I did not mean to hit you._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _And you are the guilty one here,_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _No living being has managed to receive any of my serves so far._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You could have died._

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _i look like harry potter with this bruise in my forehead_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _and it is your fault_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _but come anyway, okay?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It is my film day but i'll try to come by!_

Matsukawa and Hanamaki were living together since the last year. They at first had many problems because Hanamaki offered to pay all of the expenses of the flat that they were going to rent and Matsukawa refused. Hanamaki had no problems when it came to money, his family was rich enough to make him do his shopping without looking at the price tags. Matsukawa was also in a good condition but not enough to pay for a flat on his own. Later they found the solution in Hanamaki paying for the rent while Matsukawa for the bills, although it was too much for him. Matsukawa had a part time job, not promising much but enough for him to handle his share. Their place was the most peaceful place on earth, other than Oikawa's bed, and Oikawa liked to spend his time there. Plus, Hanamaki was pretty interested in the kitchen arts, which made the meals they offered irresistible. He knew that no matter how much busy he was, he could not get himself to say 'no' to their invitation.

His phone buzzed again, but this time it was not Matsukawa, it was a message from Iwaizumi.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _let's have a video-chat_

What was that, all of a sudden. They did not even make a proper phone call except for the voice recordings. It was unexpected for Oikawa, he did not know what to do.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i've been planning this since morning_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _please_

Well, he used the magical word that opened the doors of Oikawa's heart, _please._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _No need to beg, Iwa-chan._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _What time?_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _right now_

All he could say was an "Oh.". _oh no,_ he looked around himself and noticed the battlefield. Oikawa had a habit of messing around while watching a film. It was inevitable, people were tended to eat during the film and throw things around out of excitement, weren't they? He rushed back to his bed, pushing all the mess to the ground and made sure that nothing strange popped out from here and there. Then he ran to the mirror in bathroom, looked at his reflection. He was glad that he had a good night's sleep, no dark circles, no messy hair, no pillow trail. His clothes were also clean so he was ready.

He returned to his bed, battery of his phone was about to run out completely so he made a mental note to plug it in. His room was gloomy because of the darkness of the day, it was still afternoon but one would need a flashlight to find his way in outside. Speaking of flashlights, there was a window signalling him that he had a call in his laptop. He did not see who, but accepted, it was Iwaizumi without doubt. He noticed his nervousness when he saw his face on the right corner of his screen.

The other side of the screen was lighter than his room though, everything was standing clear. His eyes slided to the trash next to his bed and smiled forcedly.

"Hey"

"I don't eat people, Oikawa, why are you so nervous?" Iwaizumi asked while reaching out to something that Oikawa could not see for now.

"Was that my inner voice or your voice Iwa-chan, I cannot be sure?" he smiled warmer this time. They sent each other photos but that was different. Iwaizumi was moving in front of him with all his charm, and yes, Oikawa found him charming since the day he started to stalk him, his 158th crush, remember?

Iwaizumi mirrored his smile "I'm sorry for earlier, you know, I did not intend to mention anything bad." his voice was soft but Oikawa could catch a slightest bit of doubt in it.

"Uh, nevermind that, I reacted harsher than I wanted it to be." he said. For some reason his fingers became the most interesting thing in this world, he could not keep his eyes away from them.

"But again I feel guilty about it and wanted to cheer you up." apparently, the same thing happened with Iwaizumi's fingers too, now they were both looking down.

When Oikawa was about to say "You don't need to worry", his words died out. Iwaizumi again reached for something and this time Oikawa saw it clear, a guitar.

"Iwa-chan do you know how to hold it?" he asked teasingly, but actually inner Oikawa was screaming, _Is Iwaizumi going to play for me? For me out of all people?_

Iwaizumi glared at the screen, but then his expression got softer, as if he just heard inner Oikawa. Oikawa hushed to his inner self, maybe they had created a kind of special way to interact with Iwaizumi. He decided to cross-question them as soon as given the chance.

"Not only to hold…" he played a happy intro quickly and continued "but also to play it." he smiled but it was wide. _Wide._ And Oikawa felt himself melting with the intensity of it. Iwaizumi's smile was ugly, there were wrinkles everywhere and his eyes were nowhere in sight, but it warmed Oikawa's insides, away from being artificial. He wanted to see more of this smile, just to be sure why it was affecting him so much.

He clapped his hands "I'm impressed Iwa-chan but you don't think you can cheer me up with showing off, do you?"

"No, I prepared something different but just decided to play it for someone else." Iwaizumi made a move to put his guitar away.

"Wait! Mercy, Iwa-chan, I'm listening." he straighten his back and crossed his legs.

Iwaizumi crossed his arms and made a thoughtful face "I think I haven't heard the magical words yet…"

"So revengeful, so rude Iwa-chan…" Oikawa shook his head and facepalmed.

"Oh, I have a really important thing to do Oikawa, I'm sorry…"

Oikawa groaned. He felt his cheeks burning even before he mumbled "Will you please play the song you've prepared Hajime?"

Iwaizumi could swear that he saw red flashing in Oikawa's face although the light was too dim for him to see clearly. He did not understand why until he heard what Oikawa said.

"Will you please play the song you've prepared Hajime?"

 _Hajime. Hajime._ It was like he heard his name for the first time in his life, it kept ringing in his ears. He felt same redness creeping over his face and tried to focus on his guitar immediately, hoping that it would go away, unnoticed.

He started to play the song he was practicing for several hours, _The Cure - Friday I'm in Love._ The moment he started to play, Oikawa's eyes widened and he closed his mouth with his hands.

"I don't care if Monday's blue

Tuesday's grey and Wednesday too

Thursday I don't care about you

It's Friday I'm in love"

Oikawa whistled and clapped his hands happily. "Go Iwa-chan!"

Iwaizumi chuckled at Oikawa's excitement and tried his best to not the spoil his performance.

"Monday you can fall apart

Tuesday, Wednesday break my heart

Thursday doesn't even start

It's Friday I'm in love."

It continued like that, with Iwaizumi doing his best and Oikawa cheering for him. Iwaizumi was happy that he decided to go with this idea. Oikawa seemed to be enjoying himself and it definitely worth his work. Watching Oikawa was like watching a child who had just got his first chance to see a performance.

"Play it again so that I can record this time Iwa-chan!" Oikawa suggested.

"No, it was a one time thing, it'll lose its charm if it is repeated." he sighed. Playing it once was already embarrassing Iwaizumi to no end and this guy wanted another.

Oikawa whined, just like Iwaizumi imagined him before when they were chatting. He whined a lot but it suited him. To be honest, everything suited Oikawa well, he seemed flawless to Iwaizumi and it was also suspicious because the only thing Iwaizumi knew was the fact that nobody was perfect. Even Gods had a flaw; megalomania. He was determined to find any mistake in Oikawa.

He looked at the screen, taking in the sight in front of him. Alongside with his flawless being, Oikawa was also beautiful, it was probably wrong for him to think this but he was beauty, he was grace-

"I'm upgrading your status from homo-floresiensis to homo-sapien Iwa-chan, congrats." He would insult in your face.

"Huh?" Iwaizumi made a face that would probably haunt Oikawa for the rest of his life.

"From a caveman to a farmer? That's the most I get myself offer."

"Okay, I'm going for real this time."

"Come on Iwa-chan, you're not going anywhere." Oikawa made a knowing face.

Iwaizumi raised an eyebrow, "And how are you so sure?"

"Because now that you revealed something about yourself, I should do the same." he looked away for some minutes. Iwaizumi did not prepare this to get a payback, so he really did not expect anything back but on the other hand he was dying to know what would Oikawa reveal. Maybe a story about an ex-lover? Maybe his lowest score on 2048?

"Okay, here is something nobody knows about me…" Oikawa got closer to the cam, now only his mouth was on the sight. He whispered "I think I might have been abducted when I was a child."

Iwaizumi groaned loudly and tried his best to not to throw the tablet out from the window. "Don't even start with that shit Oik-"

"No Iwa-chan, I'm serious- otherwise how can you explain my beauty and sense of fashion, those have been put into me by spying aliens!" furrowing his brows, Oikawa leaned back and looked at Iwaizumi questioningly.

"You don't have a sense of fashion, you have clothes with aliens, crowns or volleyballs on them." Iwaizumi sighed. _No comments on your beauty, though._

Oikawa pouted "Why so mean, Iwa-chan? By the way, spill the beans, it's your turn now."

"My turn in what?" he asked, confused.

"Revealing a secret?" he looked at the camera expectantly.

Iwaizumi was fine by spilling out his secrets, there was none actually, he was always open to his friends. He took his chin in his hand and confessed "I love sleeping with my socks on?"

"Lewd, Iwa-chan, so lewd." Oikawa put his tongue out, disapproving of another one of Iwaizumi's favorite habits.

Iwaizumi shrugged "Your turn."

"I have no more secrets Iwa-chan, that was the only one to worth mentioning." Oikawa hold his hands up.

"What? Now I gave you my two secrets in exchange for a questionable thought? You cheated!"

"I made no promises to tell in the first hand but I can give an answer to one of your questions if you insist, I'm a gentleman after all." he said with a face reminding Iwaizumi of a guy he met back in Laboratory I., Kuroo, and his face when he insisted that he was the kindest person in earth.

Iwaizumi started to think about what he was going to ask. This was the chance he was waiting for but he, at the same time, could not come out and say 'Hey Oikawa, tell me anything wrong about you'. His mind went back to their long talks, was there anything bothering him? Too much actually. First things first, Oikawa's smile was getting on his nerves. Other than that, there was something that could be confused as a normal thing if you did not dig it much, and it was the fact that Oikawa imprisoned himself to his house. Looking back at him, Iwaizumi saw his impatient face and glances to something that he could not see. Oikawa was not an introvert, there was no way it was like that so why did he insist on staying home?

"Why don't you want to come out?" he asked, trying to keep his voice determined although he feared that he might have crossed the lines of friendship.

Oikawa looked at him surprised, like Iwaizumi asked what the first letter of alphabet was. "What are you talking about Iwa-"

"Don't make me repeat myself Oikawa, this is my question." he pressed. Iwaizumi was too surprised at his dare, he was about to break and tell Oikawa to drop it.

"I hardly think that is any of your concern." his voice was cold, also there was a smile on his face but it was not a friendly kind, nor one of those forced ones, this one was scary. And scary faces were in Iwaizumi's profession. He made one of his and decided to go for one last time:

"I am your friend and you said you would give an answer." this time the words came out lower and softer than he normally used with his friends. Now Oikawa was glaring daggers at him, no, at the screen, Iwaizumi did not feel that look on him for some reason.

"You are a gentleman after all, aren't you?" he added desperately, trying to break the bitter air. There was a curse on them today, that bitter air did not stop bursting out.

 _Damn it_ , Oikawa thought while aimlessly looking at his screen. With every passing moment he noticed Iwaizumi's face getting paler. Iwaizumi was not supposed to ask questions, he was supposed to be a good talk. It was totally his fault, totally his carelessness. How could he know that Iwaizumi noticed it? _Damn it_. It slipped because of his stupidity. He was happy with his life and seemed happy to the people around him, he underlined it whenever he found a chance but how did he… Oikawa liked smart people but not the ones that would bring him harm. _Damn it._

"You are a gentleman after all, aren't you?"

Now Iwaizumi was desperate, good, he could make his way out from this situation even if it meant to break his heart.

"You shouldn't tire yourself much, Iwa-chan, especially for a stranger." he said calmly as possible.

Iwaizumi's eyes widened "What do you mean, 'a stranger'?"

That was the reaction Oikawa waiting for, he was an expert when it came to read people and Iwaizumi was no exception. The control he was about to lose was coming back to him. _Iwaizumi is no exception._

"Talking for a week does not make us a thing, we still don't know anything about each other, furthermore it is fun to talk but…" he stilled for a moment and flashed a grin, "you really did not think we could be good friends, did you? We are different, Iwa-chan."

Iwaizumi was now gaping like a dying fish, "We were singing a song together about five minutes ago." he was talking mostly to himself, "Where do we come from here?"

Oikawa stayed silent and Iwaizumi's eyebrow twitched, "You are saying me that we are not friends…"

"It is not like-"

"Oh, it is like that Oikawa, thank you very much." Iwaizumi said and Oikawa felt himself shiver at the calmness of the tone. He thought for a moment that Iwaizumi was done with him until he heard him say, "But it is my fucking job to decide what you are to me and I'm saying that you are my friend." he pressed every word he said.

"Iwa-ch-"

"Don't 'Iwa-chan' me now, it might not be my concern for now but you are my friend and if there is something bothering you, I want to know, Tooru." Iwaizumi was angry, and this was not going as Oikawa imagined it to be. He should have thrown his tablet with Oikawa now.

It was Oikawa's turn to gape, his systems gave him a blank page. He was sure that blankness was reflecting also to his face. He had not been the protagonist of his own life story until this moment, he did not know how to function. _Tragic hero: upper-class character, no. Epic hero: fame, name, not Oikawa. Byronic hero? Too angelic for it, no. A hero for fun? No- it required the best punch._

"If you tell me that you are not ready for to answer it, it's okay, I can wait. But cut the other 'we're not friends' crap."

Oikawa felt like falling or flying, this was the moment he felt he was human, this was the moment he felt he finally found the Mr. Darcy of his heart. He opened his mouth to give a reply but suddenly, the world around him went black.

No, of course he did not faint or anything like that, it was an electricity cut. It happened fairly frequent in the area he lived in, but this was literally the worst time for it. His laptop was open but there was no connection. He searched for his phone with his hands but remembered that it's battery was out. _Fine, universe, so how do you expect me to contact Iwa-chan?_ he asked.


	5. Chapter 5

No, Oikawa was not a kind of person to cut his connection for the sake of avoiding the conversation, right? But it couldn't have also been an accident, the timing was perfect. Maybe someone up there was making fun of Iwaizumi, testing his nerves. He felt selfish that he did not care about Tooru's feelings in the first hand, he cared, okay, but it was his curiosity about his weaknesses which drove him to the point he was currently in. The rain was pouring down outside, making Iwaizumi even more depressed. He didn't want their friendship to end, and was ready to do more than his share, because he enjoyed talking with Oikawa, it somehow calmed him down.

Sighing, Iwaizumi put his hands through his almost black hair, he hated online friendships. People underrated the friendships which developed by the ways of internet, but Iwaizumi treasured those too. His way of perceiving friendship was true, but there wasn't much he could do about widespread perceivings. He wondered what Oikawa thought of him in real, a friend or a pastime activity…

He looked at his phone, searching for any kind of sign from Oikawa. The situation was annoying him with every second that wasted on waiting so he decided to take the wheel with the courage that came from having witnessed the face Oikawa made just before the electricity cut. He felt like Oikawa was going to give up his stupid idea at last, agreeing with Iwaizumi.

He went to change his clothes into a dark grey hoodie and jeans. While looking for his scarf, he texted his only friends who knew Oikawa.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _guys i need oikawa's address_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _no questions accepted_

 ** _Kyotani:_** _well, that escalated more quickly than i imagined_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _also no comments please_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i promise that i'll tell about it later_

 ** _Kyotani:_** _i don't have the devil's address_

 ** _Kyotani:_** _but hanamaki might know, let me make yahaba ask him_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you should work on your social skills, instead of using yahaba as your secretary_

 ** _Kyotani:_** _i'll try, senpai_

Iwaizumi smiled at his friend's reply. Kyotani was a nice guy when you got to know him close. He was extremely selective when it came to his friends and it was hard to go beyond his boundaries. Yahaba was a perfect example of it, Kyotani was an asshole towards him for a whole year and Iwaizumi pitied the guy. He tried his best to bend Kyotani for the sake of helping Yahaba, but then the duo became too close for Iwaizumi to find himself out.

He couldn't find the scarf he was looking for and decided to go without it for once. Wearing his coat, he checked his pockets one last time. _Keys? Okay. Phone? Where it- in his hand, yes. Wallet? Inner pocket._ His scarf was the only thing missing, so sacrificing it to the mess of his closet, he went out. The moment he closed his door, his phone buzzed, signaling a message from his favorite kyohai.

Oikawa was in living hell, it was not a first for him yet. He had tried to change his clothes without light before, no big deal, because he kept his closet neat and knew where to find what. However, with the mess coiling up his feet, it was not the best changing experience. He regretted not cleaning it before talking with Iwaizumi. As if proving him right, a piece of popcorn stuck to his right foot, making him cry out a dramatic agony. What did he do to deserve this kind of treatment from the universe? Maybe nature was taking revenge from him for his beauty…

Deciding that the massive mess on the ground was doing no good to him, he changed his mind to clean it first, then to put his clothes to go over Matsuhana's place. He used his laptop as a light source for now, deciding against dealing with candles. The candles could have been good, providing him a romantic atmosphere but he did not need a romantic atmosphere while sweeping, but maybe later, for example when talking with Iwaizumi.

He grinned at the idea and started to hum the song Iwaizumi played for him. Oikawa felt guilty for his words, but he couldn't be sure at that time what Iwaizumi was to him. He had trust issues, he was aware of that. Furthermore Oikawa was not ignorant about his own problems, and knew himself well. The part he could not be sure was the part about what Iwaizumi really thought of him. He treated the people as they treated to him, this was the golden principle that he counted upon. He mistook Iwaizumi's intentions for a minute and got an angry response back. Apparently, he was a real friend for him and to be honest, Oikawa was glad that he pressed Iwaizumi's nerves at that point because the response made him happy, happy that he mailed Iwaizumi, happy that they talked throughout the week, happy that he had such a good friend in such a short time.

After finishing the sweeping, he made his way to his closet and noticed the red light from his phone which meant the electricity was back. He switched on the lights and breathed out a 'why'. Why the universe and everybody else were rude towards him?

Oikawa put his lenses on, he didn't like going out with his glasses and plus it was raining outside so there was no way for wearing glasses. He wore a white t-shirt and green plaid shirt over it. Before he could change into his pants, something really strange happened, so strange that he stopped dead in his tracks and listened his apartment carefully.

A knock. On his door, probably.

He slowly made his way to the sound and there was another knock. He was expecting no visitors, he was going to visit the only two people who knew his address. Oikawa was smart enough to not to open his door for strangers but he was also kind enough to not to make his visitors wait in his doorstep, no matter who they might be.

As soon as he opened the door, he thought he was selfish towards the universe. The universe was not rude but rather gentle and generous, giving him an Iwaizumi Hajime in his doorstep, if not an illusion.

"Iwaizumi?" he managed out when he decided that he stared enough.

Iwaizumi nodded "Oikawa."

He felt corners of his lips curling up with the realness of the situation and the man- the shorter man- in front of him "Iwa-chan!"

"Oikawa." he said then added "Look we can keep this up forever but now as you see-" he pointed out himself.

Oikawa noticed his wet coat and jeans then. _Oh._ "Oh Iwa-"

"Before you say anything stupid, I want to say that you are my friend and I wouldn't do such things for a random stranger and I felt horrible when we couldn't finish our conversation properly because I thought you ran away from me and I hate online friendships, wanted to see you in person then I asked for your addr-"

"Iwa-cha-" he tried.

"No! Iwa-chans can wait, let me finish this, I couldn't reach your phone either and sorry for asking your private information but I had to- by the way your friends said you were no longer invited-"

"Iwa-chan will you stop?!" Oikawa yelled a little "Come in, you're dripping wet!"

"I came here to say-"

"Oh, shut up already!" he took Iwaizumi's hand and pulled him inside, noting the coldness of the skin.

Iwaizumi yelped in surprise, his cheeks flushed. He felt first the warmness of Oikawa's hand and then of the whole flat. Before he could say anything, he sensed Oikawa's intense glare on him and shivered.

"Why are you carrying those head of yours Iwa-chan, if not using?" he said, his voice became louder, gradually.

"Huh?"

"Are you stupid or something- it was just an electricity cut, did you really think that I'd leave just like that?"

"Oikawa, I'm sorry but then I couldn't be sure"

"So you found the solution in coming here, in this cold and rain, even without an umbrella or hat?" he started to look for clean towels.

"I couldn't find my scarf." Iwaizumi tried to reason.

"You're going deeper into nonsense by every word, so you thought you could protect yourself from the rain with only a scarf?" he tossed the towel to Iwaizumi who, Oikawa assumed, should be freezing.

This was like a dream, but Oikawa was not sure either good one or bad one. He wondered how that idiot had survived in streets while he was abroad. On the other side, the happiness he felt couldn't be compared to anything in his life, yet he was angry at the same time, so angry that he felt his fingers twitching.

He took the sight of Iwaizumi in, he was dressed casually other than him, with dripping wet hair and flushed cheeks from the cold they got exposed or from the angry response of Oikawa which surprised him. Oikawa got extremely sassy when he was really, truly angry and was used to smash whoever came in his way.

"I'm sorry that I worried you." Iwaizumi was holding the towel like it was the only thing that could save him from the wrath of the young man in front of him and Oikawa noted the rather cute attitude.

He sighed loudly, underlining that he was still angry, "Okay, dry yourself, you came all the way to see me and I can't even get myself listen what you say."

There was an awkward silence following Oikawa's words. They stood there without any word and eyeing the other with curious looks.

"You are shorter than me Iwa-chan."

"You are taller."

They said almost at the same time and started to laugh. The awkward air broke with their laughter, taking all the tenseness from them.

"Come, don't stand there like a lost child Iwa-chan." Oikawa said smiling, and made his way in.

Iwaizumi too smiled, "Shut up, you scared me.". He followed Oikawa inside.

Oikawa's flat was small, with only one room, a bathroom and a balcony. Even though they all stood in one room, his belongings were surprisingly taking up little space. There were a bed, an old couch, a carpet which was as big as the room itself, an american style small kitchen with a balcony, and a bookshelf full of all kinds of books and a mass of papers collected together. There was a volleyball with signatures on its surface and a scream mask attached to his curtains. The walls were empty except for the one next to Oikawa's bed, where there was a portrait of Shakespeare with a smug expression on his face, ' _blah blah blah'_ written the below.

Oikawa was going to sit on his bed then it hit him, "What do you mean, I am no longer invited?"

"Hanamaki wanted Kyotani to pass it to me, and then me to you. I don't know what it means." Iwaizumi shrugged.

Oikawa gestured him to sit on the couch and made his way towards the kitchen counter, "Are you hungry?"

Iwaizumi threw a glance towards the couch but decided to follow Oikawa, "I skipped dinner to practice the cords of the song."

"Instant ramen or pizza then?" Oikawa asked.

"Pizza, please." Iwaizumi said, almost without breathing.

"Well, well Iwa-chan, that hungry?" Oikawa teased, as if they had been sharing that flat for years. It was no surprise for him though, their conversations also had contained that same familiarity.

Iwaizumi was at peace, while he was supposed to be ashamed that he ruined the dinner Oikawa had planned with his friends. However, Oikawa performed a great hospitality towards his unexpected intruding, thus he felt at home. It could also be because he travelled too much, he felt at home when he stayed somewhere for more than an hour.

There was a warm atmosphere in Oikawa's place, due to being used often, Iwaizumi guessed. His furniture was mostly wooden and thus brown, creating a natural air. There was a smell Iwaizumi couldn't quite understand but it was musky and reminded him of the smell of his books.

They ate their dinner with calmness, talked more about their lives, Iwaizumi told Oikawa how he learned to play guitar in India and Oikawa told him about the film he watched that morning and how he related it to one of the books he read. Iwaizumi was content that he managed to see Oikawa in person, twice in a day actually. Yet he was shivering more than he should and it was a sign of his probable sickness, he tried his best to not to show it to Oikawa or he could have been a victim of aggressive concern of him.

He checked the time and realized that if they keep on talking, he would miss the last bus. He helped Oikawa do the dishes and smiled at him "Thank you for dinner and your time, Oikawa, but it's getting late so..."

Oikawa looked at him like a kicked puppy "Eh? You are going already?"

"I don't want to miss the bus, besides I have classes tomorrow," he pressed unwillingly. He, too, wanted to spend more time with his friend but every good thing had to end, just like their time together.

"My place is closer to your faculty, you know, you can stay Iwa-chan." Oikawa insisted. They were sitting on the couch where they had their dinner, with Iwaizumi leaning back and Oikawa eyeing him expectantly.

He turned to look at Oikawa's eyes but the moment he turned his head, he felt his stomach doing some flip-flops at the sight. Oikawa was leaning his elbows on his knees and face between his hands. His hair looked fluffy and soft, but Iwaizumi suspected it's naturality. He wanted to touch to be sure but that would be weird, and his stomach made another flip with lacking.

"I gave you enough discomfort for a day, plus my roommate will get worried." he said, his voice came out low.

Oikawa hold his arm "You said your roommate hardly came to the room and-" he stopped and got his face in front of Iwaizumi's abruptly.

Before Iwaizumi could say anything, Oikawa gently brought their foreheads together. Iwaizumi closed his eyes automatically and felt Oikawa's breathing wash over his face but it didn't last long.

"Congratulations, Iwa-chan, you have a fever!" he burst out angrily, his hands hovering around Iwaizumi's face and neck quickly.

"One does not die from a fever, I can survive the way back home." he said tiredly

The taller looked at him with such a temper that he gave up, "Where will I sleep?"

"Don't worry about that!" Oikawa flashed a smile and his locks fell in front of his eyes. "Let's find you comfortable clothes first," he got up and went in front of the closet, humming something Iwaizumi could not hear.

"No aliens!" he said desperately.

"I wouldn't waste my precious aliens on you, Iwa-chan."

"I wouldn't waste my patience on you but well, I do."

"Rude!" Oikawa pouted and gave him the clothes that he picked, "There you see, stands my bathroom and you are more than welcomed to use it, the blue towel that hangs back of the door is clean but I can give you an unused one if you want."

"Thanks, the blue one will be enough," he muttered.

"See, Iwa-chan, no matter how much offensive you get, I still treasure you," he said with a face that would normally made Iwaizumi punch it but he felt too tired to even scold.

He trusted Oikawa in his choice of clothes, furthermore, Oikawa's body was more built than his, so there couldn't be any problems about the size. Once he entered the bathroom he gave out a silent whistle, it was clean like it had never been used before. There was every kind of hair and body product, he wondered if Oikawa applied every one of them at the same time. He took of his clothes and sighed with relief that he got rid of them. After a quick shower, Iwaizumi wore the clothes Oikawa gave him, a red long sleeved t-shirt and black sweatpants.

He got out to find Oikawa with his pyjamas and glasses, reading something from his phone. He didn't noticed Iwaizumi because he was making funny faces and sticking out his tongue at the thing he was reading. Iwaizumi smiled at his childish behaviour and cleared his throat.

"I didn't know aliens had sight problems."

Oikawa looked at him blankly at first, then a grin found its way to his flawless face, "This three dimensional world tire my eyes much."

"Glasses look good on you, by the way." he said without thinking and felt his ears burn.

Oikawa gasped and coughed "No- it makes me look like an old man with three children."

"There's nothing wrong with old men with three children." he opposed.

"So you like grown men Iwa-chan, very classy."

"Let's hear your taste in men then, uncle Oikawa."

"I look for people's souls, not their wrinkles." he made an almighty face.

Iwaizumi clapped and dried his non-existent tears "And The Nobel Peace Prize of this year goes to our beloved alien Oikawa Tooru, who opens his arms for all kinds of people out there!"

"No autographs, please, don't use flashlights!" he stood up and hold one of his hands up his face and with the other made a peace sign.

"You are a piece of trash." Iwaizumi laughed at Oikawa's performance.

"And you are stuck with it until the morning," he sing-songed, "Come on, I prepared the bed." reaching up for Iwaizumi's hand for the second time that day, he led them to the bed.

"I can take the couch Oikawa" he suggested but Oikawa was already done with forcing him to the bed.

"Don't move Iwa-chan, I'll turn the lights off."

Oikawa's bed was big and comfy, and for a moment Iwaizumi thought that it was swallowing him. He couldn't decide where to put his arms or legs and the idea of being in another person's bed was doing funny things to his head in addition to the highness coming from the fever.

Oikawa would probably blame himself for his condition but Iwaizumi knew that it was the scarf's fault. He was already embarrassed that he disturbed Oikawa because of his misunderstanding and like it was not enough, he was being a burden to him now. His intention was only to check Oikawa, not to sleep in his bed.

Oikawa was tense as a rock when he turned the lights off. He was shocked by his own behaviour which could get him an Oscar later. It was his mistake that Iwaizumi got sick and although he hated to admit, he was happy that the situation came to this point because there was no other way to make Iwaizumi stay. He already felt sorry for their little argument about their friendship and wanted to cheer Iwaizumi up.

He found the bed in darkness and climbed the window side of it, because sometimes the cold air came in from there and he didn't want to expose Iwaizumi to it. After he finally settled down and wrap hundreds of blankets over them, he whispered "I'm sorry, Iwa-chan, I first made you sick and now uncomfortable."

Iwaizumi turned to right, to Oikawa, "No, I should be the one to apologize, I keep worrying you."

Oikawa turned to his left, facing the shorter male, "I'm sorry for my words, I didn't mean them, you know... the ones about you're not being my friend."

"I know, I came here to become sure of that." he sighed with relief.

Oikawa brought his hand to Iwaizumi's cheek, letting it stay there for some time "You're burning."

"I'll sleep through it, I need no pity from a piece of trash." he joked.

"I'm sorry." Oikawa said with a voice that was full of concern and his hand trembled while pulling off. He felt the tears making their ways to his eyes.

This time Iwaizumi reached for Oikawa's hair and let his fingers caress the soft texture "It wasn't your mistake, stop this shit."

Oikawa sniffed and forced a smile to his face "You couldn't resist my charms Iwa-chan, it took only two minutes to seduce you and I didn't even try."

"Oikawa, I'm going to ask for something," Iwaizumi got closer so that he could look directly into that chocolate brown orbs, "something that only you can provide." he tried to make his voice husky and low.

"Wh-what is it Iwa-chan?"

"I want you to stop calling me that, will you?" he raised his eyebrows questioningly.

"Nice try, but it stays," Oikawa got even closer, now their noses were touching "Iwa-chan." Iwaizumi shivered and Oikawa continued his words "Look, you like it when I call you that."

Iwaizumi scolded, "You're not playing fair, Trashykawa!"

Oikawa gave out a hearty laugh and furrowed his brows, "Show me more of your real self Iwa-chan, I didn't know you used nicknames."

"Only when it's necessary." he smiled and felt sleep taking over him. His hand was still stroking Oikawa's hair, "I've been wanting to do this since I came here."

Oikawa stilled for a second. What was 'this', petting his hair or calling him with nicknames? The decided to go with the second option, for the sake of keeping the calm air between them "How rude…"

Oikawa felt smaller in front of Iwaizumi, although it was the opposite. Something in this guy made him afraid and safe at the same time. Iwaizumi was laying there like he belonged there, like he belonged Oikawa and he tried to erase those thoughts from his head. They were barely friends, let alone belonging to each other. But that was how he met Iwaizumi in the first hand, they had shippers out there, hadn't they? He was exaggerating when he said they weren't friends but the part about belonging to different worlds was true. He couldn't imagine something more than friendship with Iwaizumi and the idea made him uneasy. Maybe he should control himself around Iwaizumi but it was also not the case because he was the first person Oikawa opened himself to, except for Makki and Mattsun. Okay, he did not open completely, not yet, but if Iwaizumi was to dig him, he could do it easily and that terrified Oikawa, his walls were supposed to be strong.

Iwaizumi said that he had classes for tomorrow but if his fever was not gone by morning, Oikawa was not going to wake him up. It was not a decision for him to make but he cared about his friend and had no problems in playing the villain. With those thoughts in his head, he drifted to a deep sleep.

Oikawa woke up without alarm in that morning. He was used to sleeping late and waking up early. His class was in afternoon, so he had plenty of time to take care of his guest. Iwaizumi was still sleeping, curled up in a blanket ball. Destiny of this blanket ball was in Oikawa's hands, he slowly reached for Iwaizumi's face. It was still warm but not from the yesterday's fever. Oikawa wondered if this was Iwaizumi's everyday warmth, without withdrawing his hand. The contrast that their skins made bewildered him. He was white as a sheet and no matter how much he tried to sunbath in his balcony, he could not get a tan. On the other hand, Iwaizumi had a tan, but he couldn't be sure if it was intentional or not. His hair colour was dark and healthy, so it was probably natural. It amazed Oikawa that in spite of his dark features, Iwaizumi had green eyes, which put so much into his general charm.

Deciding that his hand had stayed there more than it should have, Oikawa pulled off, making his way to the bathroom. He was in a good condition, so without trying to make himself more presentable than he already was, he headed over to kitchen to prepare a breakfast for them and if he had a time left, cook some soup for Iwaizumi. He was moving tip-toes in order to not to make any noise.

Iwaizumi woke up to see a very smug faced Shakespeare. He yawned and made a displeased face, what kind of nerd did want to see this every morning? _Oikawa._ He sighed and looked around in bed, that said nerd was nowhere in sight, probably up. He couldn't make out when he exactly slept, the last thing he remembered was Oikawa complaining about his rudeness. He tried to get up but couldn't move. He catched a glimpse of Oikawa from the corner of his eye and called for him, "Oikawa."

"Nice choice of words to start the day, Iwa-chan, good morning." Oikawa called back.

He tried again but it was in vain, maybe the bed had swallowed him for real, "Good morning…"

Oikawa towered above him with a spoon in one hand, "How are you feeling?"

"Better, I guess but uh…" Iwaizumi struggled more, "I might have a problem."

He saw the same expression of Shakespeare in Oikawa's face "And what might it be?"

"I think I got stuck in here." he muttered and felt a blush making its way to his face.

Oikawa, still looking at him from above, started to laugh. Iwaizumi tried to glare but watching Oikawa laugh made his lips curl up.

Deciding that he had laughed enough, Oikawa started to uncurl the blankets, "You are so small that you got lost in there Iwa-chan!" he continued to giggle.

As soon as he managed to move his arms and legs, Iwaizumi burst out and put a creepy smile on his face, "Small, huh, Oikawa?"

Oikawa backed up while Iwaizumi walked towards him, "Do you know the stories about the people who take the strangers in their houses?"

"Iwa-chan no-"

"And worst, what happens after when they annoy the stranger?" he was about to reach for Oikawa's shoulders that his foot tripped to something and pulled Oikawa with him.

Oikawa landed on the top of him, eyes wide as silver dollars, with Iwaizumi's back on the bed. Iwaizumi forgot what were they doing before that, his mind stopped working.

As far as he could see, the situation was the same or worse for Oikawa, whose mouth was also wide open with sudden landing but it didn't last long. Iwaizumi felt Oikawa relax on the top of him and for some reason he was seeing him closer and closer, eyes full of concern.

Oikawa brought their foreheads together again and waited, Iwaizumi thought for a moment that he fell asleep on him.

It was Iwaizumi who talked first, "I said I feel better."

Oikawa's eyes widen again, "Oh- I didn't mean to disturb," he began to get off, "Sorry."

"No I'm not disturbed, you never disturb me," Iwaizumi was still holding onto Oikawa's hoodie and didn't let him get off by holding him down, "If anything, it's the opposite."

"You don't have to be nice-,"

Iwaizumi cut his words with a fake cough, "I want you to take care of me, I'm sick, remember?" he whispered but it sounded too loud to his ears.

"That was one hell of an acting, Iwa-chan." Oikawa whispered too.

"And whose fault is it?" he furrowed his brows and turned his face away from Oikawa's.

He heard Oikawa shift, "Your eyes are beautiful, don't turn them away from me Iwa-chan." and afterwards, before Iwaizumi could face him, he felt a small, feather light peck in his cheek, gone as quickly as it came.


	6. Chapter 6

"There's no way you woke up with that hair." Iwaizumi crossed his arms. _No way._

"Suck it up already, Iwa-chan, I'm a piece of art, created by nature."

"And your personality should be from satan's special collection."

"Why do people keep on associating me with underground- it's obvious that I'm into space." he complained. Oikawa had few people in his life and did not bother anybody so far, but his friends were insistently relating him to underground deities.

"You're such a nerd, Oikawa." the shorter chuckled lowly. "By the way, I must leave early, to change my clothes and collect my books."

"Are you sure that you feel good? You can rest here."

"Thanks but it's one of my favourite classes."

"If you say so…"

In that point, there was nothing left for Oikawa to do, or say. He had a class too, and after that, he had to see the instructor of his German class. Now that he had to go out already, he was planning to pay a visit to Makki's place.

"Can I ask you something?" Iwaizumi asked out of blue, taking Oikawa from his thoughts.

"Do you remember what happened last time when you asked me something?" he said, hoping that Iwaizumi would get the message.

Obviously he did, due to his meaningful silence. Oikawa did not like being questioned about his decisions or life in general. Everything would come in it's own time, there was no point in pushing things and making them hard for both parties. He was living as he pleased and would share his problems, if they were important enough. Besides, it was his job to deal with them. He understood the concern of Iwaizumi but Oikawa was not a weakling. So, for the sake of making both of them satisfied, he came up with an offer.

"Will you stop asking questions if we go out together for once?"

He met with a raised eyebrow, "Is it a promise?"

"No, it's an offer, Iwa-chan, take it or lea-"

"I'm taking it." said Iwaizumi eagerly.

Oikawa doubted Iwaizumi's obedience. He didn't even think while taking the offer. As far as he could read, Iwaizumi was persistent in his friendships. For example, he was doing more than an average friend would do and was not expecting much from the other side, other than an acknowledgement. This could be considered a flaw, because if he were to keep this attitude up, Iwaizumi would get hurt. The world and the people did not deserve this kind of 'nice' and 'generous' approach, so his struggle was in vain.

While rational Oikawa was analyzing that, the copilot Oikawa was dying to protect his Iwa-chan from how hurt he might get. Iwaizumi should have not be wasted by this world and thus, Oikawa wanted to prison him in a tower for the rest of his life, away from everybody and anybody, including himself. The fall from the morning flashed in his mind and wished that he could scream out loud his feelings. He could not get over the numbness he felt in his entire existence when he kissed Iwaizumi without any intention or expectation. They could just screw the world. The world could be divided into two- them and things that were not 'them'. His place was no different than a tower, was it?

"Is that all you want to say?"

Iwaizumi shrugged, "You gave me only two options, what am I supposed to say?"

"I don't know, maybe blush and message to your girl group that you just convinced the hottest person on the planet to go out with you?"

"I want to punch you so bad," he frowned.

"No punching, Iwa-chan, and if you behave, I can let you choose where will we go."

"I'm regretting it already."

"Hush, Iwa-chan, let your inner fangirl scream and cry, let her calm." Oikawa gave a supportive smile.

Iwaizumi made a move towards Oikawa who was in far end of the couch they were sitting "That's it, I'm going to kill you."

Before he could reach his target, Oikawa's phone started to ring, making its owner almost beam to it. "Makki!"

"Unfortunately, I happen to be the other half of him." tired voice of Matsukawa greeted him.

"Oh." he said with artificial disappointment.

"I wanted to check you out, you know if you survive through your crush or not."

"Well, I haven't finish reading it yet." he said, knowing that Matsukawa would understand that his guest was still there. Iwaizumi seemed to be busy with his plate.

"Oh. My. God. He's still there, isn't he- Oikawa you little-" there was a gasp and strange noises.

"When I'm done with it I will let you know." Oikawa said, calmly as possible.

"I'm proud of you my son!" he heard distant scream of Hanamaki. "So have you, you know, nailed it?" it was Matsukawa again.

"No!" he cried and Iwaizumi's attention was back on him. "They are from different social classes, it's impossible for them to marry."

His friend laughed "Carpe diem, Oiks, quam minimum credula postero!"

"I know you ship them but that's what happens, Catherine marries Edgar and Heathcliff is haunted by his demons." he said.

Wasn't the situation same for him and Iwaizumi? Okay, there was no shit like Edgar against them but it was impossible for them to develop any kind of romantic relationship. Iwaizumi deserved a good life, preferably with someone in his league. Oikawa was handsome like Heathcliff, inner Oikawa blasted confetties at the thought, and most importantly, he was driven by his inner demons. Look, another proof that he was not a demon himself, he underlined it in his head.

"I thought you haven't finished it yet?"

"I got spoilers, okay? Now stop bothering us- them, bothering them." he tried to check Iwaizumi from the corner of his eye but they made an eye contact instead.

"Easy there, boy, see you in class then," he said and hung up.

After they said their goodbyes, which was not so much drama except for Oikawa making him wear extra clothes and a hat, and advising him to drink plenty of water and take a good care of himself. Iwaizumi promised to do all of that, because Oikawa seemed to really care about him.

On his way back to dorm, Iwaizumi let his mind go back to the things that happened between him and Oikawa. He could not quite keep up with the events while they were happening, he felt high and dizzy because of the fever. However, now that he thought about it, it was shocking to see how close they got, to the point where they slept together, and even flirted. A shiver crawled up his spine when he remembered the normally high pitched voice of Oikawa as gentle when he apologized to him and the way his breath ghosted against his skin when they were millimeters away from each other. He remembered the soft texture of Oikawa's hair, for some reason his hands missed it although they got to touch it only once. He wondered if the short hairs in his nape of the neck would feel the same, or maybe even better. Or how was the case with his damn long eyelashes. Then he remembered Oikawa's weight on the top of him, and how he relaxed against his body, how they almost became one for a moment and that last kiss.

He didn't know how to read the kiss. As an apology? As a 'thank you'? As a kind of invitation? Or just a naive gesture? Maybe there was no kiss, he was imagining things. Oikawa stated so many times that they belonged to different worlds and had nothing to do with each other, except for being friends. He underlined it even when he thought Iwaizumi did not notice that they were talking about him in the phone. However there were some mistakes in that comparison. First things first, they were not deeply in love with each other like that said fictional couple did. At the very most, he would call the thing between them attraction. The other thing was that there was no inner demon haunting Oikawa, he just liked to dramatize the situation. Iwaizumi was in good shape to punch that said demon if it was to get close to his Oikawa.

No. Not his. Not yet.

Anyway, let's be honest. Oikawa himself was a demon, and he needed nothing more demonic in him. If there had to be someone with inner demons, it would be Iwaizumi without doubt, because it was really hard to read Oikawa, and it drove him mad sometimes.

Iwaizumi shook his head, hoping it would take him out of the thoughts about that annoying alien. As soon as he arrived his room, he changed his clothes, took the necessary books and hurried out again. He considered skipping the lab but decided against it, because he enjoyed the class. Besides it required handywork and great attention, which would distract him from his thoughts.

Although Iwaizumi could be rough when he wanted to be, he was rather careful and slow in the lab. His professors favoured him when it came to the practice. He failed none of his classes so far and got some job offers from time to time. This semester he was planning not to work, there was nowhere he wanted to visit for now and his last travel costed him less than he guessed so there was some money left in his account which could buy him two or three tickets to Europe for any unexpected case.

After the lab, he rushed to the class he was going to take German. _God_. This was the thing that should bother him actually. His german was pretty elementary, he knew how to greet people and some swearing words just in case he was to hear them in somewhere. Iwaizumi took a seat in the class and got surprised because he was already ten minutes late but the instructor was nowhere in the sight. He wondered if the class was cancelled but then heard an uproar going on in the corridor. A very high pitched and annoying voice, which horribly resembled Oikawa's, was yelling in German.

"Ich spreche deutsch! Sehr gut, verdammt!"

 _"I speak German very well, damn."_ He thought about Oikawa so much that now he was yelling in German in his head. Iwaizumi froze for a second, wait.

Could it be…

Could it be that Oikawa speaking german became somehow his kink? His green eyes widened with horror and disgust. German was a magical language for him, the language of determination, of Nietzsche and of course the language of Rammstein. He was not going to let Oikawa to spoil this spell, therefore he closed his hands over his ears tightly. After a few minutes, the instructor came in, without any Oikawa.

It was impossible for Oikawa to know German, right? Iwaizumi remembered him mentioning something about knowing Latin and French, which were related to the literature directly, but German… He imagined Oikawa speaking another language and the first possibility was French. Oikawa's voice had a strange tune which was far from being dull when he was not whining or yelling, so speaking a melodic language like French would suit him perfectly well, making him hotter even. The sound of his phone got his attention from his daydream about Oikawa tutoring him in French.

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Iwa-chan where will you take me out?_

Oh. That thing. He was sure that Oikawa offered this to dodge his questions. Iwaizumi accepted Oikawa's request not to ask anything, but it was only until their date. He was planning to question Oikawa to no end in order to learn his problem. It would be no different than punching the demons who were to bother him.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _to hell, with that nickname._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Wow, it would be hot._

He chuckled at the instant reply. The teacher was writing colours and numbers to the board and making the class repeat them, so he went unnoticed.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you know french, right?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Not much._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Why? Planning to take me there?_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _no I just had a nightmare about you murdering the french language_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Oya?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Are you fantasizing about me speaking French?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Comme c'est romantique!_

Iwaizumi started to cough when he saw the messages. Okay, he was daydreaming but what was with that pinpoint, like Oikawa could read his mind.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _don't use the words 'you', 'me' and 'romantic' in the same text_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _First you came into my house._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Then you used my shower._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You slept in my bed, with me_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _So?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I think I should go into details._

 _You shouldn't,_ he thought. He had already been going into details in his head for hours and believe him or not, there was no end to it.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _please shut up, you're distracting me._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Distracting you?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You were already dreaming of me._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _oh my god oikawa what do you want_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _a proposal?_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _are you that desperate?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _What are you talking about Iwa-chan_

Iwaizumi gave out a silent groan. If Oikawa wanted to talk about something, he always found a way to bring it up but when it came to Iwaizumi's words, he acted like he had alzheimers.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _so that is the reason why you kissed me_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Don't think so hard, Iwa-chan, you will hurt your head._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i'm just trying to find a reason behind your acts_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I can kiss you more and you can become a philosopher then._

He… Oikawa didn't mean it like that, did he? Suddenly, he felt like the air around him thinned, like he was climbing up a high mountain, and although he found it difficult to breath, he felt lighter, as though he could jump and touch the sky. It created such a drama in him, for a cheesy line. It couldn't be helped, he was a man of sentiment.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you couldn't try_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You wouldn't dare_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _right, i wouldn't_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _hardcore flirting, that is_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It seems like that but it's not_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _We're just really good friends_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _no, you are flirting_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _under the cover of friendship_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _you become such a shameless rascal_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _By the way_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I've been standing in your doorway for a good fifteen minutes_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _we can see_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _and hear_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _that's your punishment for ditching us yesterday_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _But Iwa-chan said that I was no longer invited_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _then for not informing us about what was going on_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _..._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _If I can't come in I can't tell you the best part_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _you're just bluffing_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Then I'll just go home and think what will happen in our upcoming hot DATE with Iwa-chan alone._

"Date?"

The door ripped open at the second his message sent. Oikawa put a pout in his face "You're the worst parents in this world."

Hanamaki and Matsukawa looked at each other then threw themselves to their knees in front of Oikawa.

"We solemnly apologize, Oikawa-sama."

Oikawa stared at them.

"Forgive our idiocy, Oikawa-sama," said Hanamaki, elbowing his boyfriend.

"Mercy, Grand King," Matsukawa repeated with a pained expression.

It was a nickname given to him by his underclassmen in the department. Because he had top results in every single one of the exams, an orange shrimp gave him that name and from then on, even his professors addressed him by Grand King. The flow this naming created was so huge that there was his photo, in the chart, which showed British monarchy, hanged along with the portraits of other queens and kings.

"You should hug me and say I'm the prettiest, the smartest and the greatest of the all people," Oikawa opened his arms for a hug.

The duo obeyed by getting up and throwing their arms around Oikawa.

"You are the prettiest alien," said Hanamaki.

"And the greatest piece of shit," added Matsukawa.

 _You shouldn't come together with Iwa-chan_ , he thought. _Never_. _Ever_. They went in and Oikawa realized that he missed being here, it was like a second home to him. Marching automatically towards kitchen, he noticed the heavenly smell, and smiled. When he glanced back, Hanamaki winked.

"You didn't think we would let you go without a proper dinner, did you?"

"Mattsun could have done that."

"He can still do it," Hanamaki said, while tangling his hand with his sulking boyfriend's hair. "That's why I'm the mom."

"That's why I love you Makki," Oikawa replied, he loved Mattsun too but he was never going to admit it loud.

"Oi, I'm still here, you know," Matsukawa said with an irritated voice. His face reminded Oikawa of Iwaizumi's angry face level 3. There were 5 stages of his anger and Oikawa thought that there might be more to it but he desired not to face them if possible.

The dinner went on in peace. Matsukawa complained about the chef in the cafe he worked. That said chef was making him work harder than others for some unknown reason and was making sure that Matsukawa was last to leave at the end of the every shift. Working was not usually a big deal to him but not when he had schoolwork and a very demandy boyfriend waiting at home. Oikawa came up with an idea of murder, and Hanamaki agreed. The two of them made a detailed plan, how they would poison the man and make it look like an accident. Matsukawa thought it was getting out of the hand when he heard a demonic laughter from them and decided to change the subject.

"So a date, huh?"

Oikawa nodded.

"Whose idea was that?" Hanamaki asked.

"It was mine," he muttered and blushed under the gaze of his friends.

Matsukawa made an expression suggesting that he already knew that. Hanamaki continued questioning.

"Do you think it's really okay for you?"

Oikawa was looking anywhere but his friends. He shook his head as a no.

"A total masochist," said Matsukawa but was cut off by a smack in the head.

Hanamaki was glaring at him. "Nobody asked about your ideas." Then he turned back to Oikawa, with a concerned face "You don't have to go."

"But I want to," Oikawa replied slowly, "for Iwaizumi."

Hanamaki and Matsukawa were shocked. They had known Oikawa since almost childhood and knew the reasons that kept him apart from the world. Being a different and sensitive kid, Oikawa had not been treated so well in his first school years. In middle school, they were in the same school altogether but it made a little difference. Even their teachers were constantly telling him to act like a man. _A man_. In high school, he managed to enter Shiratorizawa easily, but there was another problem waiting for him in there too. At first, they thought that being in a team would provide Oikawa a kind of new friendships, a new family but Oikawa was so paranoid that he thought nobody would acknowledge him until he became the best of everything. He kept on practicing until late nights and studied for his lessons until mornings. Because they were in different schools, they could not prevent Oikawa from harming himself like that and Oikawa had no other friends to back him up then. Being under such a weight set by his very own self, Oikawa started to think it was his deficiency that caused the other people's disappointment in him. One day on their third year, they convinced Oikawa to meet. They had not seen each other for six months and it was going to be a good break for Oikawa. However, when they saw Oikawa, they felt terrible because he was thinner than usual and his light was gone. He was looking good after his hair and clothes still but the Oikawa they knew was not there. That meeting became a turning point for them and from then on, they forced Oikawa into other meetings and forced him to do as he pleased, not what the other people expected of him. It was their effort that pushed Oikawa to study literature in university.

The situation was the same from Oikawa's point of view. He knew what he did to himself and it was his friends which took him out of that hell. However, now he did not trust anybody other than those two, and had problems with melting into crowds. No- melting could not be an issue, while he was having problems even while looking at the crowds. He was trying to change this unpleasant ideas, and while he was working on it, it was best for him to not to go out. Not until he was ready to face both his problems and the people. It was not his mistake that he felt like that, so he hated everybody who came into his life so far. He hated that they had made such a loser out of him.

Oikawa had admirers more than haters, but it was the direct result of his good looks. He knew that he had an appealing outlook while compared to the majority. He was always kind towards that admirers but it was just that. Nobody really knew who he was inside and sadly, nobody tried to know him. It was just for his pretty face, so he became a loser in that field too.

Then came Iwaizumi Hajime. It was not convenient for him to put that much trust in a person he had only known for a week but something was different. Oikawa was sure that it was not for his good looks that Iwaizumi became friends with him. Furthermore, he was asking questions to get to know Oikawa. The real Oikawa. The inner Oikawa. It was not his concern, Iwaizumi was living a pretty good life with travelling around with his friends. He had also a manly charm which could possibly get him whomever he wanted. Yet he was so inexplicably, unbelievably interested in Oikawa and it meant so much to him after all those years of desperation and humiliation. For the god's sake, he came all the way to Oikawa to be sure that everything was good between them. He prepared such cute performance for the thought that he may have broken Oikawa's heart. For all that things Iwaizumi did for him, Oikawa wanted to give him something in return.

Meanwhile, Iwaizumi was suffering. It was Oikawa's offer to go out but why he was the one to organize the details. He was not even sure what it really meant. It could be a date, or just two friends hanging out, or just Oikawa wanted to get rid of his questions. The multiplicity of meaning brought multiplicity of choices with it. Cinema or a concert was always a safe choice in such a situation. They could talk all day long in a cafe but it would be boring. Visiting the zoo was one option but not the one Iwaizumi wanted to take because he was sure that Oikawa would relate all the animals he saw to Iwaizumi, and one of them, which would strongly happen to be Oikawa, would be dead at the end of the day. He wanted something that would make the day special for both of them but there was exactly where his mind got stuck. They could just sit and look each other's face and it could become a special day to Iwaizumi. For some reason, he remembered every moment they shared together clearly and it was not something he did for all of his friends. The relationship they had reminded him of the relationship of the earth and the moon. Oikawa was the earth, had a great gravity on his own and was pulling Iwaizumi to himself, or the other way around, pushing him off. Iwaizumi, the moon, had no say in this and would just float there, watching intently what the earth would do next, embracing whatever might come.

He was now aimlessly walking around in the city. Staying inside and doing nothing was not his thing, Iwaizumi liked to explore new places and new people. It was also one of the things that bothered him. Was Oikawa just an exploration for him? Would Iwaizumi get bored when he went deeper and deeper into him? They would always stay friends, Iwaizumi was not going to let Oikawa go but was that all? A part in him, who looked literally everywhere in this world to find his soulmate, kept whispering him that why can't it be Oikawa, would it be good to listen that? Did he want to know the answer for that question?

Oikawa found a way to worm into his head when he was left alone with his thoughts. Well, Oikawa made his way into his mind by texting the times when Iwaizumi was really doing something. Okay he was always there and went on being annoying, because this attraction was getting out of hand. He was doing nothing more than annoy him, annoy Iwaizumi, whose temper never rose up towards his friends. Sighing, he found the solution in texting the subject of his thoughts.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i'm suffering_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Why so?_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _can't decide where to take you_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Aww Iwa-chan…._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _now that i have heard that nickname, i can suffer more_

Iwaizumi was sitting on a wall of an abandoned household outside the city and could see the all lights of the city twinkling on that winter night. He could take Oikawa here. Then maybe Oikawa would finally tell him why he hated that city so much and Iwaizumi could tell him that it was worth being discovered, the people are worth discovering. Oikawa, for sure, would not be having none of them, being a sneaky bastard as always, then Iwaizumi would kick him off the wall and watch him roll downwards to the city, waving happily behind him. When he was about to laugh, he felt his phone buzzing. It was a call from Oikawa,of whom he was thinking just a second ago.

"Iwa-chan!" his overjoyed voice greeted Iwaizumi.

"God…" he facepalmed.

He heard a chuckle "That was close but no, It's me, Tooru."

"I can see." he smiled but was careful to not to reveal it.

"My heart did not let me leave you to suffer alone." Oikawa said with a dramatic tone.

"Are you suggesting we suffer together?" he asked, raising his brow.

"Of course not! I'm here to save you. Where are you, by the way, there are strange noises?"

Iwaizumi looked around like he hadn't been there for thirty minutes, "I'm out."

"Oh…" there was a pause "Am I interrupting something?"

"No, I texted you first, remember?" he answered reassuringly.

"Good," he heard a sigh of relief.

"Where are you?" asked Iwaizumi, although he knew the answer very well.

"I just got back home from Makki's," well, that was unexpected, making Iwaizumi smile again.

"Good," now it was his turn to sigh with relief.

He heard some rustling from the other end of the phone, Oikawa was probably shifting.

"You said you would save me," he said.

"Right, I will make one of your dreams come true, Iwa-chan."

"What's that?" he asked, before making his voice annoyingly concerned "Don't say me that you're taking your own life?!"

"Unfortunately, not today." Oikawa's answer disturbed him but before he could say anything, Oikawa continued "Today, Iwaizumi Hajime, I will read you a story. The Ugly Duckling."

"Ha ha ha Oikawa."

"In French, Iwa-chan, just as you imagined," he said happily and started to read the story with a calm voice and smooth French "Des brises d'été ondulaient l'herbe verte. Le lac bleu étincelait. Près du lac, une maman canard était assise sur un nid qui contenait quatre petits oeufs et un grand oeuf."

Iwaizumi was listening Oikawa with pure attention, although he understood nothing. He was listening Oikawa's passionate voice, his lifelike reading, the funny change of his voice while probably reading the conversations, his breathing on the stops. He wished that Oikawa had been there with him, that he could see his expressions and mimics. It was enjoyable to watch Oikawa while he was talking, he was making all kinds of faces and gesturing uncontrollably. Iwaizumi returned his attention to Oikawa's story.

"Les autres cygnes le saluèrent. Tu es le plus joli de tous les cygnes, dirent-ils. Le vilain caneton rougit. Je ne suis pas le plus beau de tous les cygnes, dit-il, Je suis le plus heureux de tous les cygnes!"

There was a silence but Iwaizumi didn't noticed it until he heard Oikawa cough and ask, "Have you fallen asleep Iwa-chan?"

"It was the most boring time of my life," he lied and not knowing why, felt like he was about to cry.

"Meanie!" Oikawa whined. He was probably pouting too. Iwaizumi again wished the same thing, this time more despairingly. He wanted to see Oikawa, he needed Oikawa's presence next to him so bad that it made his hands tremble, his head and more importantly his heart hurt.

"You were supposed to save me, not push me deeper into despair," this time it was the truth. His voice cracked and he could do anything to prevent his words from reaching to the other end of the line, but that was impossible.

"What's wrong Iwa-chan?" now all the playfulness was gone, only worry remained.

Iwaizumi took a deep breath and it burned his lungs, in spite of the considerable degrees of cold air, "What's wrong with you- Trashykawa. You said that you had been abducted, so why don't you use that power of yours and do something about-" he stopped to breath again.

"About what Iwaizumi, I can't read minds."

"Good, it's nice to know that," he said calmly at last.

There was a silence in the line again. This time neither party did anything to break it. And it was again Oikawa who took Iwaizumi from his trance.

"I'm sorry for whatever I may have done."

"What?!" burst out both inner and outer, all Iwaizumis at the same time.

"You you were already deep in thought when I called you and I did nothing to cure the situation, did I?" he heard a nervous chuckle "I'm sorry, please get angry with me, you can also yell and call me names but please don't be sad, God I don't know what to do now."

Iwaizumi was speechless. He couldn't decide who was more stupid? Was that Oikawa who took all the blame in himself although he had no clue about what was going on or was it Iwaizumi who lost his control and let Oikawa think all those things.

"Hajime please? I will do anything- I can hang up if it's me-" Iwaizumi's eyes widened at the words and didn't let Oikawa finish them.

"No! Don't ever hang up- I just need…" he stopped for a moment, "you. I need you so please just don't," added with a weak voice, which itself begged Oikawa to stay.

"Oh." something in Oikawa's tone told Iwaizumi that he would regret this breakdown one day.

"Don't say a word," he said hurriedly but changed his mind, "or say, tell me how your day was with all the boring details."

Again a rustle and shifting, which made Iwaizumi smile because they all indicated that Oikawa's alive somewhere in there, within that twinkling lights.

"Okay, I can manage it. I woke up today, unusually, with someone in my bed. It was a first for me but I had no time to think about that because that said person was sick from the previous day. I felt responsible for it but furthermore, I was worried. Before I made my out from the bed, I reached for his face and controlled how he was doing. Then I noticed how our skins contrasted against each other. Deciding that I stared enough, I first went to bathroom to check myself then to the kitchen to prepare a breakfast and a soup for that person. My hands are pretty quick and gifted in kitchen so i was able to finish it before he woke up. First thing he said was my name, not my name actually, he called me with it only once? Whatever, counting my last name also as my first name, I became really happy. I went to see him as the cutest blanket roll, but he thought otherwise. Then while I was running away from his anger, I suddenly found myself on the top of him," a pause and a sigh "at first I thought he was going to be crushed under me, you know, he is smaller than me. But he's not so thin- just smaller, when compared to me. However all my thoughts was gone when I looked down to see his face. We were already glued to each other, but I… it was just a funny thought but I wanted to be closer, like there were kilometers between us, I felt his body against mine yet it was not… enough. I leaned my forehead to his. Then we whispered the funniest jokes ever to each other-"

"That was not what we said," Iwaizumi commented and added, "by the way, the soup was delicious, you are far more than just gifted, Tooru." Finally his bad mood was gone and it wasn't even the start of the Oikawa's day.


	7. Chapter 7

**_Iwaizumi:_** _you fell asleep on me_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _But Iwa-chan it was boring_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you were the one talking_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you left me there like I'm a piece of trash_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It's all because of you_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You told me to keep it detailed and it bored me_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _As expected from everything that is detailed._

Oikawa was glad that they did not talk about Iwaizumi's little breakdown. It was unexpected, taking the state of calmness and collectiveness of Iwaizumi into consideration. Oikawa was proud of his ability to read people but it didn't work with Iwaizumi this time, they had been enjoying themselves and bam! Their mood ruined for some reason unknown.

Iwaizumi said that he needed Oikawa, almost begged him to stay on the line. It sure surprised Oikawa, and although it shouldn't, it pleased him. He wanted to see Iwaizumi from every angle possible, to learn every little thing about him, because of his curiosity of course. Just out of curiosity.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _whatever_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _one should learn from his mistakes_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _at least i learned that you suck as a friend_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Don't you have classes or something Iwa-chan_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Stop breaking my heart_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _my tuesdays are free_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Well, mine are not_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _See you later, friend!_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _mature.. very mature Oikawa_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _runnin away from your problems like that_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i was going to say where we will go but now that you're busy_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I don't have time but I can create some for you Iwa-chan_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _please don't_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _it is my duty to make sure that you are doing well with your responsibilities._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Iwa-chan!_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _bye, friend!_

Oikawa grimaced and paid his attention to the girl who was making a presentation. He enjoyed the presentations, he liked to present his ideas and discuss them with his class. The atmosphere in his department was more than suitable for it and unlike the rest who had decided to keep their ideas to themselves, he liked to share.

Though, the case was not the same with sharing his emotions, and his mind shifted again to Iwaizumi. He was forcing Oikawa to share, not intentionally maybe but he was damn successful in each talk that passed between them. It was like he was waiting for Iwaizumi to set forth an outburst of emotions. More interestingly, it did not even have to be about himself, when Iwaizumi was the case, he felt the same outburst coming.

Iwaizumi deserved the best, he shouldn't be sad or bothered by anything in life, according to Oikawa. The guy was bearing with all his annoying attitude first of all. It was something rare, considering his whole life. Besides he was really considerate and flexible because of his versatile personality and it made Oikawa's head spin, and stomach drop. On one hand, he wanted to do everything to make sure that Iwaizumi lived a good life, felt good and was happy. On the other hand, the more selfish and dark side of Oikawa wanted to keep Iwaizumi away from everything and anything to prevent him from getting harm from the world just like he did.

When he was thinking all of this, Iwaizumi's attitude worried and scared him, because he did not want Iwaizumi's attention and specifically attraction. For a mere second, he was happy that Iwaizumi needed him, and said it without any hesitation. But it was only for a second, then the fear washed over him again. He was not the person that Iwaizumi should be needing, he was not the best. Oikawa was slowly coping with his problems and he did not want anything that required him to be the best, so thanks. It was okay for him to have a crush on Iwaizumi but it had to stay a one-sided thing. Maybe suffering would help him to become a poet, who knows?

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i thought you would be more persistent_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _smth wrong?_

That was exactly what Oikawa was thinking about. No one cared this much about him other than Hanamaki and his mother. Hanamaki was his best friend, and his mother was… She was his mother. He didn't know where to put Iwaizumi in his life, of course there were some appealing options but no, not appealing options. Could they become best friends? Yes, If Oikawa could manage to keep his fangirling to himself, which was not possible so no, not best friends either.

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Iwa-chan are you my mom?_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _no but i'll gladly be your murderer_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I highly doubt that._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _SO_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you're good, right? If there's anything bothering you, i'm here_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Drop it already Iwa-chan!_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I'm fiiine._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _I don't expect you to be just fine_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _I want you to be great_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _because i'll take you somewhere you'll really like_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It should be a place we both will like_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i'm not forcing myself into something i don't want, if you're implying that_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You should enjoy yourself, rather than thinking about others Iwa-chan_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i appreciate your concern but i'd rather have both parties enjoy_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _so we will go there and have a good time_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _together_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It will be on saturday, right?_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _right_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _unfortunately_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You get addicted to me so easily Iwa-chan._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I know I'm impossible to resist but_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Don't do that._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _yes, it's hard to resist to the urge to break your neck_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _btw it's my life and my choices, you get away from them_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Don't be rude_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I'm just being a good friend_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _don't push yourself much_

Oikawa gave out a deep sigh, those were words he had longed to hear for many years. He needed to be reminded of that fact fairly frequent and the only ones saying it were Matsukawa and Hanamaki. He wondered what kind of face Iwaizumi was making while saying that, and wished he had been able to see it.

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Your fridays are also free_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _We can meet on friday_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you're saying that because you will already be out of school, aren't you_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _nah, thanks_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I meant it as another meeting but your rudeness spoiled it_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _are you serious?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _No, I'm being incredibly sarcastic._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _oh my god oikawa_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _where have you been all my life_

Oikawa's eyes widened, so it was Iwaizumi's turn to use cheesy lines, huh? They were going closer and closer to the point of no return, for the hundredth time, and it was dangerous. He locked his phone, preventing himself from responding to those words. The class was about to end, so he absentmindedly started to pack his notes.

On his way home, he tried to focus on the things he saw here and there, on the people around him but it was all in vain. Looking at the sky, he forced himself to think about the NASA's news about the life in outer space, but the only life he was interested in was Iwaizumi. He shouldn't have promised anything, he shouldn't have been so friendly, so close, so open…

What were his options? It was obvious that there was something intimate between them no matter how much Oikawa tried to control himself. Iwaizumi was perfect on many sides, it was hard to not to be affected by him. He was nice and warm, he was willing to do anything for Oikawa and apparently was not holding himself back like Oikawa was. Iwaizumi was also handsome, it was an undeniable truth, especially for Oikawa. He remembered the night they spent together, it was such a hard time for him because Iwaizumi was more attractive and hotter than he imagined. He was gentle while stroking Oikawa's hair, he was determined, there was no doubt in his actions and it made Oikawa jealous at how easily Iwaizumi expressed himself.

The only thing was, for both Iwaizumi's and his purity, to set boundaries. It was sad but their timing was not right, it was too late, Oikawa was broken and Iwaizumi needed to be happy.

As soon as he arrived home, Oikawa undressed and got under his blankets, without checking his phone or computer. This whole situation depressed him and he was the only one to blame. As he was in all the fields in his life, he was not enough in this subject too. Swearing to his inadequacy, his hesitance, his lacking, he decided to enjoy Iwaizumi's presence until saturday.

If there were something for sure, it was the affection he was currently, strongly, passionately feeling towards Oikawa. He was right about Iwaizumi getting addicted to him, he was right when he said that he was not even trying to seduce Iwaizumi yet successful at it. Oikawa was the only person who annoyed Iwaizumi to hell, Oikawa was the only person whose absence made Iwaizumi unable to breathe, Oikawa was the only person Iwaizumi ever wanted to protect, only person he wanted to hold onto.

After his little breakdown, Iwaizumi came into the decision that he would make Oikawa happy at all costs. He wanted to keep that nerdy alien delighted, to keep his true, heart melting smile on his stupid pretty face forever.

Was that the feeling Iwaizumi has been looking for for years? Yes. First things first, why not? He'd had several relationships before but none of them made him feel that alive, that active. They had all been outcome of physical attraction, nothing on emotional level, thus short and not serious. He was looking for someone with whom he could share practically everything of his. It was what love meant to him, devoting everything one had, from all the joys to unbearable pains, to the one particular person. That one person was to be the other's soulmate. Iwaizumi wanted to test and see whether Oikawa was that special person or not.

There was a frozen lake where his father had taken him in every winter since his infancy. His plan was to take Oikawa there. It was a secluded area, therefore they could be alone, which he thought would please Oikawa. Iwaizumi himself was eager to go too, he had wanted to visit there for some time but had not been able to find a chance yet. The transportation was provided by the ways of ropeways, so if nothing else, they could enjoy the scenery.

It was not the only thing on his mind, searching for some answers, Iwaizumi was determined to make Oikawa spill everything in his mind out. They could argue and even fight, he didn't mind, the only thing he minded was keeping the things that bothered Oikawa away. Speaking of Oikawa… that idiot had not texted him for almost a day, which was firing up his worries. Deciding to take the lead in conversation, as a true adult, Iwaizumi sent the first message.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _don't tell me you've started preparing for saturday so hard that you forgot to text me_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I haven't._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You sounded awfully like me._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _your saltiness level can compete with mediterranean sea and win_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Then go take it out._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _how rude!_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _That is my line, Iwa-chan._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _then don't make me use it again_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I'm sorry, classes are keeping me busy._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _And tense, of course_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I didn't mean to be rude._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _idk_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you broke my glass heart_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _LOL_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Your heart is anything but a glass_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _it hurt_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It did not hurt when you were torturing your books_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _You deserved this_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Take it as a man Iwa-chan_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _they like the way i treat them_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i haven't seen any of them leaving so far_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _It doesn't mean that they don't want to_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _of course they don't, they're mine_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I scorn you, scurvy companion._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i beg your pardon but_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _did you just insult me_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _with a shakespeare-insult?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _How do you know?_

 ** _Oikawa: (_** ** _｡_** ** _ŏ_ŏ)_**

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i googled it_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I memorized 45 of his insults_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _that's something you'd do_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i'm not surprised_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _But nobody knows it_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Must stay between us_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Seal it with an embarrassing thing about you_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _there's nothing embarrassing about me_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i have a hidden photo album in my phone, full of spider pics_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i mean thousands of them_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _O horror, horror, horror!_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Tongue nor heart cannot conceive nor name thee!_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _are you studying shakespeare or what_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I feel Shakespeare today, not Tooru._

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _i want my tooru back_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _you're dead, shakes, now march to your grave please_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Sometimes I hear voices_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Telling me I am dead._

Iwaizumi groaned with frustration, Oikawa was playing with him. He already knew that Oikawa became sassy when he was angry but Iwaizumi never witnessed it to this extent. It was clear that Oikawa did not want to talk, so he let it be. He had promised to do a video call with his friends from India and actually did not have time for Oikawa's sass, although he was curious about the cause of it.

Anil, his friend from India, was a good guy, Iwaizumi liked to hang out with him and his band. There were four members of his squad, two guitarists who were twin brothers and a drummer girl, Anil's girlfriend, and himself, as vocal. Despite being a local band, they had been giving concerts in overseas and Iwaizumi met them during one of those in Indonesia. Their music was light and calming, it could be considered indie but they played all kinds of songs while practising. Iwaizumi learned through experience from many times abroad that musicians were the most secure and reliable people when one was an outsider in a country. There had been days when he had to wander in streets for a place to stay and most of the time, street musicians helped him to find a good one.

Iwaizumi himself was also interested in music since his childhood but never found a chance to pay attention to it, nor was he allowed to. His parents brought him up as though they were raising up a aristocrat, they shaped him up as they please until college. Iwaizumi did exactly what he was told, counting it as a payback for their efforts in his well being. However in college, he started to think more about himself, he was always thinking before but this time on more existential level. He had a one life and was going to live rest of it as he pleased, so he decided on his travels.

His travels added to Iwaizumi's personality much. For the first time in his life, he experienced starvation in Ghana. He went boating and got lost for two days in Venice. For the first time he celebrated _Losar_ and prayed with the natives in Tibet. For the first time in his life, someone divided his pritzel into two for sharing it with Iwaizumi in Bosphorus, and he learned the true meaning of melancholy in Istanbul. For the first time in his life, he played _Halimora_ with Caucasian children in the foothills of Mount Elbrus. In Nordaustlandet, he saw the sun that never sets. He ate the tastiest viennoiseries in _Sebastien Gaudard_ , in Paris. Those were only a part of what he lived. He saw so many cities and so many people, he met hundreds of them, and as his parents had done, those people also shaped Iwaizumi, bringing him into his current self.

Coming back to the talk with his friends, it was to persuade him into the Singapore tour they were planning. There was nothing specific about there but after it, they would come to Tokyo and they wanted to bring Iwaizumi with them both as a guide and a member of their band as they promised before. Normally, he would jump at this offer but he was feeling exhausted. Of course he would gladly guide them, join them in Tokyo but the Singapore part was… to be honest, he was still excited about Oikawa's cameo into his life, internally, and wanted to focus on their friendship for a while. Additionally, it had been merely two weeks since he returned from France, for the heaven's sake, he wanted to rest.

 _"Lord Henry went out to the garden and found Dorian Gray burying his face in the great cool lilac-blossoms, feverishly drinking in their perfume as if it had been vine. He came close to him and put his hand upon his shoul-"_

"Hoe don't do it-" Oikawa cut Matsukawa's voice.

 _"SHOulder. 'You are quite right to do that,' he murmured. 'Nothing can cure the soul but the senses, just as nothing can cure the senses but the soul'"_

"Awww."

"That's it- I'm gonna hang up!" Matsukawa said "Why am I the one reading this"

"Because I like your voice Mattsun, I'd like to make babies with it If I had a chance." answered Oikawa, changing the phone to his other hand to check his nails.

"No babies, gentleman, leave your gayness out while talking to my man." Hanamaki yelled warningly.

"Don't worry honey, everything is under my control. I was about to hang up on this perv."

"No you were not, Mattsun! You promised to read until I feel satisfied." he whined, hitting the bed with his feet.

"I'm reading for three hours but you are not even close to being satisfied Oiks, let me live my life in peace."

"Go stick to your cause of nervousness!" again yelled Hanamaki. He easily became jealous with Matsukawa and it amused Oikawa every time he witnessed this.

"I'm not nervous!" he yelled back "I'm just trying to repress my overflow of negative feelings with the help of calmness coming from the voice of a person to whom I thrust deep inside."

"Don't use academic language with me!" he heard some muffling sounds from the other end of the line and the phone was now obviously on Hanamaki.

"But mom-"

"I'm not your mom, I will make you pay our telephone bill." Hanamaki sneered.

"Makki but-"

"No buts, go call Iwaizumi or I will call and ask for his address so that I can be able to post him your embarrassing photos."

"It was nice to talk, bye, guys!" Oikawa bursted out at speed of light and hanged up.

Oikawa was so busy with his assignments and presentations that they could not speak a word properly to Iwaizumi. It had been two days since they last talked, not talk actually but Oikawa bitching around. They nevertheless sent 'good mornings' and 'good nights', and occasionally talked about their days but those were not counted as gratifying so… their plan to go out was tomorrow and although Oikawa was dead curious about where they would go, he didn't asked. The idea of accepting to go somewhere unknown was terrifying for him, he strongly prefered to be in control of everything in his life. However, he trusted Iwaizumi with his choices and wanted to show both it and the fact that he could go out with anyone and have no problems with it.

He also made up his mind on putting some space between Iwaizumi and himself. At least make sure of the fact that they were just friends and would stay like that for the rest of their time together. For everyone's sakes.

Even so, a phone call wouldn't hurt anyone, would it? They could not find a chance to talk yet and the whereabouts of their meeting was waiting to be decided. Not that he wanted to hear Iwaizumi's voice or something, the situation required a call, so he dialled the number. After three rings, Iwaizumi answered with a huff.

"Hey, wait a sec" he greeted but did not continue, rather Oikawa heard screams and other strange noises and Iwaizumi yelling "Okay guys, party is over now go home- no there's not where people sleep! Yuuji get your shit together! Or don't, take your friends and go-"

Oikawa smiled while listening to Iwaizumi's struggle with his obviously drunk friends. Though he didn't go out much, even Oikawa knew the reputation of Terushima Yuuji and his party squad. It was not bad kind of reputation though, people liked hanging out with them and Oikawa would never understand why. Iwaizumi's cough took him out of his thoughts.

"Hey, Iwa-chan."

"Hi again Oikawa, sorry to keep you waiting." now there was only Iwaizumi's voice.

"I had fun while listening you struggle actually." he said.

"Oh yes- I forgot for a moment that you're a demon, who watches the world crumble and burn with his popcorn."

Oikawa pouted "Didn't your parents teach you not to look down on others' fancies?"

"You're not even denying it anymore." Iwaizumi laughed and Oikawa decided to keep his angry response to himself, for the sake of that laugh.

"No matter how much I denied it, you kept on calling me that and I had no other choice but to go with it." Oikawa laughed too.

"So? Why did you call? Anything wrong?" serious Iwaizumi was back.

"Do I need a reason to call you Iwaizumi-san?" serious Oikawa sounded strange.

There was a pause, "No... but you just surprised me, after sassing three days long..."

"I was overwhelmed by responsibilities, Iwa-chan, it was a hard week," he sighed. It was the truth, along with the thoughts of how to put a distance between them though.

"I'm not complaining but you could share some of your trouble with me, you don't have to be alone."

"Uh, thanks," was all he could manage out. Iwaizumi knew all of his weak points and was hitting them one by one every time.

"Don't just thank me- dumbass, do as I say!" other male was riled at him.

"I decide what I will do or won't do Iwa-chan," Oikawa defended himself.

"Ahh- I see… there is still some salt left."

"I'm not salty, if anything, I'd be luscious," he opposed. _God, haven't this guy met Tsukishima Kei yet? He is salty. Not me. Pickles are salty. Jonathan Swift was salty. Not me. Matsukawa's omelettes are salty. Every single time._ _Napoleon Bonaparte was salty. Small and salty. Not me._ Not Oikawa.

"Salty things can be luscious too."

Oikawa started to cough uncontrollably. Iwaizumi sounded serious about his subject but Oikawa couldn't help it. None of those up was luscious, including Tsukishima. No, exclude pickles. Oikawa liked pickles. He wouldn't let them be victims of generalization.

"Anyway Iwa-chan, I thought you couldn't get any sleep because of excitement and come to relieve it a bit."

He heard Iwaizumi 'tch' and giggled silently, "The part about not getting any sleep is true, out of all nights, Terushima decided to throw a party tonight."

"You said he barely comes by."

"Yes, this is the first time we've seen each other after my arrival." he sighed.

"I hope it also happen to be last."

"Why did you said so?" said Iwaizumi, taken aback.

This time Oikawa sighed, "Your voice comes out tired and rough Iwa-chan, this is not fun, this is pain."

He heard Iwaizumi exhale loudly "you're right, I don't even know when our room will be available for me to be able to sleep."

"You can always come by." he offered without thinking. Apparently, Inner Oikawa was not taking any of the shit of Outer Oikawa about putting a distance.

"I know, thanks."

"Don't just thank me Iwa-chan! Do as I say." he repeated Iwaizumi's earlier phrase.

"I'm not a proud shit like you, I have no problem in doing things that others say."

"What a coincidence Iwa-chan, me neither!" he dismissed.

"Oikawa, I want to punch you in the ribs," Iwaizumi's voice was low.

Oikawa, too, made his voice low intentionally "Oh, exactly how much do you want it Iwaizumi?"

"So much that it makes my fingers twitch."

"Iwa-chan you can't guess how much I like messing with you while you're away from me."

"You won't like me messing with your ribs."

"Nah- It depends, you know-" he said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively, although they were talking on the phone.

"Oikawa!" Iwaizumi cut him warningly.

"Let a man dream, Iwa-chan!" he whimpered in response and continued, "I was serious about the offer though, we're going to meet early tomorrow, aren't we? You should sleep well to handle me."

"I can sort that out by myself."

"Share your troubles with me Iwaizumi." Oikawa said with highly concerned voice.

"That's it, I'm going to Singapore, I can't take your shit anymore."

"At least don't tell me where you will go, now I have no other choice but haunt you in there too."

Iwaizumi chuckled on the other end of the line and it would sound so cheesy, fluffy, romantic and corny but Oikawa's heart swelled with it.


	8. Chapter 8

_Nervous:_ _A condition of fear that causes one to tense, awkward, jittery, and apprehensive, possibly with trembling or excitability, often caused by being uncertain of what dangers may be looming or how to handle them._

Was Iwaizumi nervous? He was feeling nervous, yes, but not totally in accordance with this definition. The word 'calm' would more suit his physical attitude now, and it was at the same time 'irritating'. He was calm, the weather was calm, the city was calm and something was either missing, or was strange yet so annoyingly calm. Even his roommate was sleeping peacefully, maybe it is something good for your own roommate but for Terushima Yuuji, it was strange.

Looking at himself one last time in mirror, he swore to the dark circles under his eyes from lack of sleep and to the absence of his scarf, where the hell was that even? He chose casual clothes, or had to, all of his clothes were casual. One could categorize them according to their level of casual-ness, ranging the between I-am-going-to-school-early-I-don't-have-time-for-wearing-good-for-you-folks kind of causal, and I-am-going-on-a-date-let's-try-not-to-disappoint-the-bae kind of causal. A dark green turtleneck sweater, and dark jeans with his navy blue parka that he did not favoured much because it had a fur line, which made him look like a bear cub. But it could not be helped, it was winter and they were going to a mountain lake, freezing to death was the last thing on his mind for today.

He made sure that everything necessary was in his backpack, from coffee to blankets. Not knowing what would Oikawa prefer as snack, he took biscuits and two sandwiches left from yesterday's party. He also took his mittens, his body temperature was higher than normal compared to the other people but no one can be sure when they would become helpful. After making sure that he was ready, he messaged his friend.

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _I'll be there in twenty minutes_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Oh_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I'm early then, I've already arrived_

 ** _Iwaizumi:_** _that eager?_

Iwaizumi stormed out of the dorm like wind in a hurricane, without checking his phone to see if there was an answer. He hated to make people wait but every time he managed it somehow, either he was being late or the other party was decidedly early. This time Oikawa had been early, because Iwaizumi woke up earlier than he planned to so as not be late.

They were going to meet by the bus station where they would take a bus to the mountains and change to ropeway from then on until the lake. His backpack hit his back while he was running and the furs of his coat were getting into his mouth; so it was not such a charismatic kind of run that you imagined.

Running like Godzilla was after him, he managed to arrive the station in ten minutes, which was a record for Iwaizumi. He leant forward to his knees and took a few deep breath, or tried, because he was coughing like a heavy smoker. Even though he came in ten minutes, he was going to use the other ten to calm himself down. While he was drying the corner of his eyes, he felt a patting on his shoulder. Raising his head and gaze, Iwaizumi saw Oikawa, with a shit eating grin on his flushed face.

"Don't cry Iwa-chan, I understand your excitement."

Iwaizumi made a displeased face but did not answer, he rather went with an apology, "Sorry to keep you waiting."

Oikawa dismissed the apology with a gesture of his hand and Iwaizumi found a chance to take a good look at him. Wearing a long black duffle coat and a wool scarf that covered most of his neck and shoulders, making them look wider than they already were, he seemed even taller, and captivating. He was wearing no hat, nor earmuffs, and Iwaizumi was sure that it was so as not to ruin his perfectly made hair. Oikawa was insistent on it being natural but it looked so annoyingly good that there was no way for it to be not be made.

The sight of Oikawa was a banquet for his eyes but it was, at the same time, disturbing. The image was perfect from outside, Oikawa seemed healthy and well-groomed, and his smile could kill hundreds of people with its charm yet Iwaizumi felt it was wrong. Not felt even, he knew sure as death that something was wrong with Oikawa. It was the reason for their date on the first hand, wasn't it? The subtle bribing of Oikawa to keep Iwaizumi's curiosity and questions under control. His silent way of saying "don't interfere with my life"... Iwaizumi was not fool enough to not understand that underlining, but furthermore, he strangely had an ability to read Oikawa like a open book. Even when he first looked at the picture of Oikawa, he felt uneasy from the face, from the expression he saw without talking a word to the guy.

Iwaizumi was happy to see the taller male but not as much as he thought he would be. Crediting it to his sleep depriving mind, he straightened himself up, "I don't feel like giving a hug, please don't mind."

Oikawa looked wounded for a mere second but it was replaced with an expression that was hard to read, "Exactly like I thought."

He furrowed his brows but asked no further questions, "Shall we go then?"

"So I offered to kill him." Oikawa said, like it was the most normal thing to do in any situation.

"And make it look like an accident, right?" Iwaizumi guessed, because it was Oikawa's style in killing, he listened more of these murder plans before.

"Where do you get that Iwa-chan?"

He shrugged "I get used to your way of handling hardships I guess which is either ignoring or punching or killing."

"Five points to- what is your house in Hogwarts Iwa-chan?" he asked with a glint in his eyes, _such a nerd._

"Gryffindor." It was obvious, almost writing in his head.

"Five points to Gryffindor, unfortunately." Iwaizumi gave a silent _'Oh'_ in understanding.

"A Slytherin, isn't it?" Oikawa's answer was just a slow and dramatic nod.

"Shit happens." said Iwaizumi and he, too, nodded in the same way.

"Right."

Together they continued to nod their heads and to 'tch' occasionally until they made eye contact. They started to laugh the moment their eyes met and could not stop until they were given a warning cough from a lady sitting further back.

Iwaizumi let Oikawa take the window seat, knowing the ways they were going to go. He traveled too much to fight over a seat, but Oikawa _was_ the kind of person who could fight over a seat. It was like there were two kinds of people and Oikawa was on one side and Iwaizumi was on the other. He felt complete with their differences, Oikawa was looking at the things from an angle he couldn't, and Iwaizumi was doing the same thing for Oikawa. To become a proper one, they needed each other, and it was the only thing that Iwaizumi expected from a relationship, filling the blanks for each other.

They arrived at the ropeway station soon, but the hardest part was from there on, it was going to take an hour to reach the lake. While they were waiting for an empty cabinet, Iwaizumi noticed Oikawa looking at his watch.

"Do you have any other plans for afterwards?"

"Of course not, Iwa-chan, don't be afraid. I'm yours for a day."

 _Is that so?_ He wanted to smirk and say but he would not be so himself. Before he could say anything, he noticed an empty cabinet and holding Oikawa's wrist, he led them inside. They sat next to each other and he felt Oikawa turn towards him.

"Here," Oikawa took hold of Iwaizumi's shoulders and turned him towards himself, putting his hood up, "I don't want you to get cold again."

Oikawa was busy with fixing his hood while Iwaizumi studied his face and took in the scent of his perfume. The day was cold, dark, calm yet with Oikawa by his side, it was nice and pleasant.

"Iwa-chan you're ogling me." he said while leaning back, leaving Iwaizumi's life circle.

"I just noticed that you look uglier when you get closer." It was not the truth, and Iwaizumi averted his eyes.

"You're a terrible liar."

"Shut up."

Iwaizumi missed the closeness, it was helping him to relax, to get rid of the tension left from the party and sleepless night. He turned his gaze again towards Oikawa and catch him already looking.

"Now you're ogling me."

"I am, I'm not going to deny anything."

"What a straightforward response. I am expecting same performance in every subject."

" _Great expectations_."

"Not everything is about literature, Oikawa."

"Yet literature is about everything and anything Iwa-chan."

"You're doing your best."

"At what?"

"At avoiding the subject."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You are a step ahead of me in this argument, or two steps maybe, aren't you?" he couldn't help but yawn.

"Again I don't know what you are talking about." Oikawa took Iwaizumi's head and let it lay on his shoulder. "Sleep for a while, will you?"

"I'm not even halfway done with you, Trashy-kawa." Oikawa's shoulder was big, comfy, secure and while watching the white puffs of Oikawa's breathing, he felt himself drifting to the sleep.

"Uh-huh Iwa-chan." was last thing he remembered, and Oikawa lightly patting his head.

Oikawa promised himself that he was not going to get all flirty and stuff, and he was doing quite well with it. Okay, he woke up early, even before the sun, and prepared himself for hours. His house and normally tidy closet turned into an actual hell, and for the first time in his life he thought he was going to die by the hands of Matsukawa. Oikawa did not just wake up and try to find suitable clothes like a every normal human being. Hesitant and afraid, he called his best friends at the very moment he woke up and forced them to company with him until he left the house.

He said he would not be close to Iwaizumi, draw a line for their relationship but he never told anything about looking good. It was his principle, to look good at all costs but for today, Oikawa did his best, like trying to prove to Iwaizumi, or other people, or mostly to himself that he was worthy of Iwaizumi, which was not the case, on an emotional level at least. He was confident in any physical challenge on the other hand.

Speaking of physical, Iwaizumi could also take down many people with his looks. There was nothing special about him, he was surprisingly casual and common. However, his confidence, his walk, his standing, his bodily gestures all talked for him, taking him up on Oikawa's _'Hottest People on Earth'_ list. Iwaizumi could go out only with a sack and Oikawa would still fan over him. It was presumably the thing what people called natural charm.

And, that said 'natural charm' was sleeping soundly on his shoulder and Oikawa facepalmed internally. He was doing everything that he had said he would stop; it must have been the appeal of the forbidden. Inner Oikawa was grinning cockily at him and it was getting on his nerves. All of these was the work of that little fucker, and every time, the outer Oikawa had to take responsibility of the other's actions.

Sometimes taking responsibility might be good. Sometimes. For example, now. Inside his fluffy hood, Iwaizumi looked irresistibly cute, with his cheeks and tip of his nose flushed from the cold. Oikawa wanted to squeeze them, but the more caring part of him would not allow it. He was aware that Iwaizumi was there having had little sleep and Oikawa wanted to provide him with some peace for an hour. Iwaizumi's presence and soft breathing against his neck was more than enough company for Oikawa, plus the scenery was beautiful to watch so no problems.

Time could stop there and then and Oikawa would be glad. A meteor could fall and hit them, and Oikawa would die happily with Iwaizumi by his side. He had not done anything that he'd regret so far but from now on, he was going to do and before he could do anything, he'd gladly die. He was going to hurt both Inner Oikawa and Iwaizumi, but on a larger scale, it would be good for everyone. _I mean look at this dork, he deserves to be happy,_ he said to his inner self.

 _Yeah but he's happy when he's with you, how about that?_ Now this damn thing was responding to him.

 _We're just enjoying each other's company, that's all. Just take a look at yourself, you lack so much and he is the hottest piece of ass one can ever find. He's too much for this world._ Oikawa literally reasoned with himself, yet the reply was instant from Inner Oikawa.

 _Cool story bro but do you really believe it?_

 _Shut up- you don't even exist, bweeeh._ He took his tongue out to his other self.

The cabinet swang with wind and Iwaizumi shifted against his shoulder. He was a quiet sleeper, Oikawa knew it from experience. His sleep was like a rabbit's sleep. yet he did not wake up even once while sleeping with Iwaizumi. It was opposite for Iwaizumi though, because Oikawa touched all over his face while he was sleeping yet he did not even flinch. His arm was starting to get numb, so not knowing what to do, he snaked it around Iwaizumi's back and made himself more comfortable.

He looked around and started to hum a song under his breath "Just a perfect day, you made me forget myself..."

While humming the song, Oikawa took out his phone and opened his camera. This was a golden chance; the background was amazing, he looked extremely good and Iwaizumi was sleeping like a puppy on his shoulder. He liked to take photos, of himself preferably, and a voice in his head kept telling him that he would miss this day sometime in future.

Holding up his camera up with his free hand, without any filter of course, because he needed none, nor did Iwaizumi. Oikawa grinned at the screen and took millions of selfies. They could be used for blackmailing later, his inner self laughed evilly at the idea. They were not always fighting, they both were sadistic.

In the middle of his shooting, a strong wind blew and Oikawa made an eye contact with Iwaizumi in his screen. Grinning sheepishly, Oikawa slowly started to lower his phone, with every intention to put it back to his pocket before Iwaizumi realizing what was going on but it was too late now.

Iwaizumi's reflexes were good but Oikawa's were the best. Before the dark haired male could hold his arm out, Oikawa tightened his hold on Iwaizumi.

"Let me keep them Iwa-chan!" he cried out, it was hard to keep Iwaizumi down.

"No- you will use them for blackmail, I'm hundred percent sure of it!" Iwaizumi struggled.

Oikawa couldn't help but laugh as he did internally back when Iwaizumi was sleeping. His hold loosened for a millisecond and Iwaizumi was free.

"I'm taking this bident." he managed to catch the phone but Oikawa refused to let it go.

"No it's a smart phone, not a mythological weapon."

"Oh really? Come on Oikawa, let me look at them."

"No way! Then you are going to delete them, aren't you? I look sooo good today, I couldn't miss this chance." Oikawa whined.

Oikawa hold his arm higher and did not realize how close they were now. Iwaizumi was in his personal space, leaning for the phone, the furs of his hood were tickling Oikawa's face and obviously, he was not aware of their proximity either. The cabinet was shaken violently, causing Iwaizumi to fall into Oikawa's lap.

Oikawa gave out a loud puff and Iwaizumi blinked, with a blush making its way towards his already flushed cheeks. With an awe, Oikawa opened his mouth to say something but Iwaizumi cut him.

"Shut up."

"But I didn't say anything."

"You were going to."

Thinking if he was not allowed to say anything, he'd let his actions speak, Oikawa touched Iwaizumi's nose with his finger.

"It's cold."

Iwaizumi frowned, "Is this your interpretation of 'shut up'?"

"Rude bastard." said Oikawa, mostly to himself. When he made up his mind to withdraw his finger, Iwaizumi took his hand between his own.

"Your hands are cold too."

"I wonder why." he answered sarcastically.

Without letting go of his hand, Iwaizumi got up and pulled Oikawa with him, "Let's go, you salty blackmailer."

Oikawa didn't even recall stopping until Iwaizumi stood up. Despite coldness of his nose, Iwaizumi's hand was interestingly warm.

"How come your hands are so warm, you have heaters in your pockets, don't you, Iwa-chan?" he asked, raising a sceptical eyebrow.

"How about you find it yourself?" was his answer and again without letting go even for a second, Iwaizumi put their hands together in his pocket, pulling Oikawa closer to himself.

It was Oikawa's turn to blush but the sudden hit of the cold hid it well. They set up a slow pace and Oikawa allowed the other male to take the lead in their walk. There was no one but the two of them, likely because it was winter. Their arms were touching and in spite of their height difference, Oikawa again felt smaller next to Iwaizumi.

"In my dream, you took me to Venice, Iwa-chan." it was true. After their phone call, he started to think about where they would go and it managed to fill his dream, too.

"Is that so? How was it?"

"There was a really very disturbing smell. And as soon as we landed there, you left me alone, wishing me a good holiday."

"That is rude."

"Exactly, as you can see, you were being your usual self Iwa- ow!" Oikawa winced in pain when Iwaizumi pinched his hand inside the pocket.

"I took you to the other end of the world and you were still complaining about the smell. Come to think of it, you might have deserved that."

"But it reeked."

"I've been to there two times, there are some streets that smell bad but generally speaking, it does not reek. Not much."

"When you talk about your travels, you sound older."

Iwaizumi smiled at his comment but did not answer. They walked for awhile in silence, listening to the sounds of their steps and forest around them. He felt Iwaizumi tighten his hold on his hand. It was pleasant.

"Would you like that if I were to take you there for real? Or anywhere, would you like to travel with me?"

"Should I lie and say yes?"

Iwaizumi sighed and squeezed his hand with every word he said, "Don't ever lie to me Tooru, I can also take your 'no'."

"My answer would be a no then."

"I want to ask why so bad but at the same time I fear for my life- I mean we're in the middle of the forest and you spend most of your days with making murder plans so…"

Oikawa pulled his hand back and crossed his arms, "You are mean, Iwaizumi!"

"And what are you then? You're so stubborn! Can't you see how much I care-"

"I don't remember asking for your care."

The moment words came out of his mouth, Oikawa wished he could take them back, it was not what he meant. The expression on Iwaizumi's face summarized their whole intercourse, sick, confused, hurt and tired. Without saying any more, Iwaizumi continued on their path, a few steps ahead of Oikawa. Inner Oikawa 'tch'ed at himself and he ran after Iwaizumi to try another approach.

"I'm having problems in expressing myself, I didn't mean it like that Iwa-chan." as if nothing had happened, he took Iwaizumi's hand and put them again in shorter male's pocket. He was met with no resistance and sighed in relief.

Iwaizumi did not resist but did not hold Oikawa's hand as he did before either. Oikawa knew that he was getting on Iwaizumi's nerves. It was to prove that Iwaizumi deserved better, his secret message to universe and Iwaizumi that Oikawa was not _that_ special person.

"Are you going to ignore me all day long?" he asked, squeezing Iwaizumi's hand hard.

Yet again was no response. "I don't know the way to lake but I know the way back well Iwa-chan." he bluffed and intended to pull his hand, but Iwaizumi didn't let him.

"My silence is my answer you say, noble, very noble."

Iwaizumi glared at him in return. "The case is that Iwa-chan, although how much I like to hang around with you, I don't have any intention, or motivation to change this into something that requires more of me, because there's no more."

There was again a silence. Oikawa was about to open his mouth that they stopped in front of a frozen lake. It was small but gorgeous. On the other shore, there was a tent but other than that, there was nothing.

"I swear that that was not there a second ago."

"Yeah, I teleported it to shut you up." Iwaizumi snapped back.

"Now tell me which one of us is more salty?"

"I'm not salty, I'm pissed."

"I see, small and angry, that's cute Iwa-chan."

Iwaizumi scowled and pulled Oikawa towards a plain area. "My dad used to take me here with him since my childhood. Just him and me, sitting here, watching the motionless yet extremely destructive nature. Sometimes I read him books, sometimes we just slept but only two of us. You're the first person to see this here with me, other than him."

Oikawa nodded in agreement and avoided any dumb comments.

"I was wondering why he kept taking me here, I mean you can see, there's nothing here. Not a single soul, nor any animal to see. No fishing, no camping, but we came here every single winter despite that." he looked thoughtful.

"It's beautiful, Iwa-chan, and calming. And silent. I might understand your dad, and like him."

"He wouldn't like you though, you're loud." Iwaizumi smiled, warmer than his hands.

"No problems, I'm used to one-sided things, it's my profession." he breathed out loud. What was there to say, it was the undeniable truth.

Iwaizumi quirked an eyebrow, "So you already have someone…?"

Oikawa felt him tense and smiled reassuringly, "Do you really think I have?"

"Well, you're not allowing me to make any moves, and to be frank, I'm suspecting that, yes." _Very frank actually_ , he thought.

"I want to hit your head with something hard." he silently cried. Iwaizumi already knew what kind of life Oikawa lived yet he managed to suspect it.

"We share a lot, I want to do the same thing with you, constantly." For example, did this comment surprise Oikawa? No. Because he knew Iwaizumi well enough.

"Don't change the subject, Iwa-chan, I want to be sure that everything's clear between us."

"You're such a hypocrite."

Deciding to ignore that fact, Oikawa continued "I don't like anybody in that way, that's not the case."

"What's the case then?"

"What do you want Iwa-chan, I'm here with you, aren't I?" he huffed wearily.

"Are you really with me here?"

"Don't go all existentialist on me."

"Then don't make me." Iwaizumi's answers were instant, as if he studied them.

"We're having communication problems."

He saw Iwaizumi facepalm, "A Slytherin."

"I don't want to hear my house insulted, especially by a Gryffindor." he sneered back in anger.

"Then draw your wand and stand your ground." with a mischievous smile, Iwaizumi challenged.

Oikawa's heart skipped a beat. The moment was perfect, just two of them, surrounded by forest and silence, like there was only two of them in the earth, and they were making fandom references even when fighting. He needed nothing more, nothing physical could give him that much pleasure, but Iwaizumi's one hand was also doing great. It was the climax of his life, peak point of all his past and present emotions.

"I love this thing between us. I want it to stay as it is." he wished, not to inform Iwaizumi, but to be heard by whichever god was on the line.

Long time no see, reader. That nerd is talking too much, isn't he? As opposed to him, Iwaizumi is man of actions and direct shots. For example, all that time, he just wanted to punch Oikawa, that's it. To punch some sense into that thick skulled annoying creature. He was against violence but somehow, a voice in his head kept telling him that everything would be bright and beautiful once he threw a punch at that pretty face.

What was exactly the thing between them for the god's sake? _I love this thing between us._ Iwaizumi was asking with rage in his head; _well, how about sharing your information about that thing with me, illuminate me maybe? No? Is it because there's no more of you?_ He couldn't be sure when he completely lost the thread of their conversation, or relationship as a whole.

Of course, instead of bursting out all this confusion and rage, he just took out the blankets, unwillingly letting go of Oikawa's hand, and laid one of them on the ground, and after making themselves comfortable on it, took the other to their shoulders. The blanket was big enough to cover them both, so there was no need to snuggle closer.

However.

Oikawa obviously needed no reason snuggle, he was that instinctive, yet he could line hundreds of reasons up if you were to ask him why, and none of them would go hand in hand with the fact that he was into Iwaizumi. Because Oikawa Tooru loved the thing between them as it was, remember? Unidentified, flirtatious, and under the absolute control of him.

"Are you feeling cold?" despite all his anger, he couldn't get himself from caring madly about that idiot every single second.

"A little bit."

"C'mere." he hold his arm up for Oikawa to get under it.

Oikawa snuggled closer. He was resembling a squirrel with his cheeks red from the cold and coffee in his hand. Iwaizumi wrapped his left arm around Oikawa's shoulders and pulled the blanket up their heads, causing Oikawa to cry out in an agony.

"What do you want from my hair, you smiling damned villain?!"

"You both keep throwing insults at me and complain about my rudeness."

"You like the way I am Iwa-chan."

"No, you're too loud for my taste." he said, while shoving a biscuit in Oikawa's mouth.

Oikawa was shockingly calm, without whining or pouting, he ate the biscuit.

"So are we going to sit here and do practically nothing?" he asked lightly.

"It was the only thing on my mind." he told the story of it, this was a place where they did nothing.

Throwing the blanket off of himself, Oikawa pulled out his phone and played a song, "That's what you'd do with your dad, not me." he said and bowed gracefully, holding his hand up in front of the very confused Iwaizumi, "Would you like to dance with me, Hajime?"

He looked up to see Oikawa smiling brightly. He took the hand that was held up for him and with his other hand, Iwaizumi grabbed the blanket.

"I'd like to dance, but first" he smiled apologetically and wrapped the blanket around Oikawa's shoulders "Let's make sure that you don't get cold."

He tied two corners of the blanket together and it was looking like a cloak on Oikawa now. When he was done with it, he took a step back and eyed the taller male, whose sight made Iwaizumi laugh out loud. Oikawa narrowed his eyes and came closer to pull Iwaizumi's hood up again, ignoring the ongoing chuckles of him.

A live version of _All I Need_ by _Radiohead_ kept playing while they first awkwardly got closer and, then with a slow pace started to dance. There was nothing romantic, if anyone was to see them, they could confuse them with a couple of bears wrestling. It was cold, the song was coming out in a low quality, their shoes were all sloppy and making strange noises. Although all those poor conditions, it was blissful, neither of them complained. Iwaizumi snaked his arms under Oikawa's towards his shoulders and Oikawa's hands were on his lower back. With the their thick clothing and an extra blanket, it was hard to move but there was no need for it anyway.

Iwaizumi buried his face into Oikawa's scarf to get more of his scent, _more of him._ His mind went to his own scarf, while Thom Yorke kept singing the lines of his song seriously. It was what would happen in real world, since it went missing, it was all Iwaizumi needed. He chuckled and Oikawa, too, shook with him.

"What's so funny?" he mumbled against his ear and although he couldn't see, he felt Oikawa smiling.

"I haven't found my scarf yet."

The hands around his waist tighten and pulled Iwaizumi closer to the owner of them "And it's all you need, isn't it?" his voice was full of joy.

"I couldn't help myself- really…" Iwaizumi shook his head, "you're already here and it is the only thing missing."

"You never fail to amuse me Iwa-chan."


	9. Chapter 9

They were walking around the lake before making their way back to city. Although Iwaizumi insisted on lying and doing nothing, Oikawa wanted to take a look around. The area was deserted by people and walking in the fresh air could be beneficial to Oikawa's rotten physical self. His body was athletic, he was a perfect setter, but after neglecting daily practices with the responsibilities of college which required lots of different sitting positions, he inevitably lost his muscular endurance. Still, he was careful with the calories he took for the sake of preserving his physical appeal.

"So you suggest that we get presents for each other." Iwaizumi cut off his thoughts.

Oikawa tried to smile as brightly as he could. "Yes, new year presents."

"But there're still two months until it."

"That's no excuse Iwa-chan." There was no point in Iwaizumi's objection. If Oikawa wants something, he takes it. No matter how dumb the thing is.

"This is nonsense." _Exactly._

"Okay, don't bother, quit it, just forget about it." Oikawa frowned but checked Iwaizumi from the corner of his eye. It was Iwaizumi's flaw, he could not say 'no' to Oikawa. It took very little time for Oikawa to realize that, under the primitive of his surface, Iwaizumi had a little resistance towards the taller male.

"What kind of presents should they be?" he asked tiredly.

Oikawa's face lit up again. "Weird presents Iwa-chan."

"Weird?" Iwaizumi stopped for a moment and looked directly into the chocolate brown orbs with his green ones. His eyes matching the dark green of the half-dead forest around them. Yet, his eyes were determinate and full of light, and life, and a strange strength which also gave the same feeling to Oikawa whenever he were to look straight at them.

After taking a few seconds to compose himself, Oikawa continued both walking and his talk. "Yes, anything weird will do. And we both have to make sure that we use them in public at least once."

"Hanamaki's place will not be counted as public place." said Iwaizumi, warningly.

"Okay, I can manage it elsewhere, It will be fun!" Oikawa snapped back. Notwithstanding the strange relationship between them, he wanted their regular friendship to be a good one. Very few people managed to fit themselves into Oikawa's life and he was ready to give his everything to those few.

"Agreed then." Iwaizumi turned his attention back to the distorted road they were following.

"You won't regret it- or you will." he smiled devilishly. There were hundreds of ideas going around his head and he pitied Iwaizumi for a moment because Oikawa was going to be such a villain.

"I won't go easy on you either." Iwaizumi turned his smile, as devilishly as Oikawa's own.

A silent atmosphere settled between them, much to Oikawa's dislike, because he was trying to avoid silence specifically. Silence meant thinking minds at that moment and the more Iwaizumi thought, the more he bugged Oikawa about the issues he was not ready to share. It was same on the Oikawa's end, he did not want to think about the things between them but furthermore, there was this issue bothering him since Iwaizumi had first mentioned it. Not that he purposefully initiated it, it just happened to him. He opened his mouth to ask what he was wondering but closed again. It was not his concern.

Iwaizumi noticed it and rubbed back of Oikawa's hand reassuringly, like he had just read his mind, like he says "it is your concern.". Oikawa spilled out the question in his mind.

"So have you decided?"

Iwaizumi raised a questioning brow.

"You know, about going to Singapore?" he added with a slight hesitation.

Oikawa expected a yes or no but Iwaizumi answered with none. "Why do you ask?"

"Uhm… I… I just-"

"Don't tell me there's another date on the line." There was sarcasm in his voice and Oikawa felt his lips curve downwards with irritation.

"No! We're friends aren't we? I may wonder your whereabouts." he tried to reason.

"We are not even seeing each other in person everyday, my whereabouts will make no difference in our texting ritual." It was Iwaizumi's turn to be irritated.

"Of course it will make Iwa-chan!" He said automatically, and continued "I'd worry about you for example, if you were to be abroad."

"You should worry about my being in dormitory, you know, I live with a beast." the shorter male sighed.

Oikawa chuckled, "That worries me too, but in a different level."

"So you spend your time worrying about me in different levels.".

Oikawa turned to look at the expression his face but Iwaizumi seemed absent.

"That's what friends do." he tried to make it sound cheerful.

"Tch." It certainly did not break thoughtful state of Iwaizumi. Oikawa tried his chance again.

"Okay, that's what close friends do."

"Yeah, whatever." Iwaizumi shrugged. Oikawa frowned and tried again.

"Best friends?"

"Super duper friends?" and again.

Iwa squeezed his hand hard at this one while asking, "Super-duper?"

"What? I'm cold and you're helping your super-duper friend out to warm up." he whined.

"I have extra gloves." the other suggested.

"I have gloves too, that's not the point Iwa-chan."

"What's the point?"

"You can let go if you are that disturbed by my hand." Oikawa complained.

"Stop misinterpreting my words."

"Then stop questioning my intentions."

None of them was willing to break the silence, which settled between them again for the second time in only five minutes. Oikawa was not sure what was going on between them, they were being either extremely sweet or extremely sassy towards each other. Oikawa just wanted them to be friends, which could range between being 'just friends' and 'super-duper friends'. And friends, no matter in which category they were, might wonder about their friends, can't they? With this justification in mind, he brought back his previous question.

"You haven't answer my question yet."

Oikawa knew well that he was being insistent when Iwaizumi gave out a deep sigh. "My friends are being pretty persistent, but I don't feel like going actually."

This time Oikawa sighed, but different from Iwaizumi, he sighed with relief, followed by a fearful pause. Did he just sigh with relief? No. No, It could not be happening. When characters sigh with relief about something which has nothing to do with them, that means those characters are deep in shit, which is equal to falling for someone they shouldn't. Oikawa was in really deep shit. The realization caught him like a deer in the headlights. He was in control of everything from the very first message, he was all the time aware that there was possibility of him falling for Iwaizumi, he knew well along and calculated and planned and wouldn't let himself do stupid things, feel stupid things damn he needed a distraction.

"Tell me something Iwa-chan."

"Like what." Iwaizumi hummed.

"Don't know, a story, a memory, an adventure, anything will do."

"When I was in dubai, my friend took me to a safari in desert and we rode camels. But mine was a bit rebellious and it started to run the opposite direction of the rest of the group we were in and they found us two hours later on the desert."

"I will find that little rebel and burn it." Oikawa said between his teeth. What was with this story? He wanted a distraction but Iwaizumi was making him more and more worried about himself and it irritated Oikawa further.

Iwaizumi turned to look at his face. "What did you say?"

"What an unfortunate event, I was saying."

"Yes, and It did not end with just that, I got the worst sunburn of my life in that day."

Oikawa laughed at this one because he had seen the posts of Iwaizumi from that time. "Oh yes, I've seen the photo from that time on facebook."

"Are you stalking me?"

"I already informed you about that in the very first message of mine."

"I thought you said that to take my attention." said Iwaizumi, taken aback. His eyes were wide, making obvious that he really did not expected this.

"Do I look like person who need to make an extra effort to take someone's attention?" Oikawa asked smugly.

"Don't get too ahead of yourself."

Ignoring the shorter male, he continued his bragging. "I'm charming by nature, I can't help it."

"I hate this self of yours." His voice was low and bitter.

"What self?" Oikawa eyed Iwaizumi suspiciously.

"Absolutely nothing." Iwaizumi averted his gaze. "How about we sit there a bit?" he pointed out an open area just near the shore and without waiting for Oikawa's response, he went there and started to make himself comfortable.

Oikawa watched every move of the other attentively, trying to understand what he was thinking right at that moment. He was going to get rid of his own thoughts, of his own feelings now that they were so fresh. Then he would try his best to spoil Iwaizumi's.

Iwaizumi was not going to let Oikawa spoil this meeting. He was determined to find the answer to his question by the end of their day together, the question of whether Oikawa was the true person for him or not. If Oikawa felt same way about him or even was capable of feeling the same thing. They were on their way back to the ropeway, and Oikawa was telling him his guideline to survive without going out for half a month.

"Recurring payments are doing half of the work in this case Iwa-chan, for example I've never gone out to pay a bill or the rent. Likewise, shopping can also be done online."

"Woah, wait there Oikawa. One cannot shop without touching the things they will buy." Iwaizumi opposed.

"Most of the markets already sell the foods with tight packages, you can't see them even if you want to. Vegetables may be an exception though, if you don't have any reliable online grocers."

"But what about the shopping cart? What about all those feelings it brings?" he asked dramatically.

"It is a necessary sacrifice for the good of your comfort Iwa-chan."

"Then you accuse me of being brutal, while you are a marginalized robot-human. I can't decide which one of us is deeper in shit."

"Oh that's definitely, without doubt, me." Oikawa bursted out much to his surprise. Iwaizumi felt one of his curious brows raised questioningly.

"Well, Iwa-chan," a pause, "people keep saying that I'm a piece of shit so I must be the one deeper, aren't I?" Oikawa's face was neutral but there was hesitation in his voice.

Iwaizumi stopped and Oikawa had to stop with him. He considered talking much into this issue but decided to let it slip for this time. "You're not a piece of shit Tooru."

He felt Oikawa's hand tense in his hold. "I know it's just joking…" he said quietly.

"But?"

"You know what they say, there's always a little truth behind every joke" Oikawa added and smiled, Iwaizumi assumed, to break the awkward air.

"Don't smile like that, it gives me the creeps."

A strange but unpleasant expression flashed in Oikawa's face. "Sorry, Iwa-chan~~" he sing-songed.

"Stop this Oikawa I swear I'm gonna break that neck of yours one day." Oikawa cut his voice of with the furious reply he got from Iwaizumi. "You're everything but a shit." he admitted afterwards, watching Oikawa's face went between hundreds of emotions.

"Iwaizumi I-"

"No. You shut up. Okay your mouth can be shitty, and sometimes you give me that urge to tear you in pieces and burn each of them slowly and separately but that's not the case. The case is that although I've known you for only a week, it strangely feels like forever. I'm making this talk because I am sure that you show me most of your true self and ff there's anything I've learned about you, it is that you are annoyingly perfect, in every sense of the word. I tried to find anything off about you but except for your thick skull up there," Iwaizumi pointed out Oikawa's head, "everything is spotless, devoid of any flaw."

That was it. That was Iwaizumi's ultimate move, he let out the things in his head, not exactly like he wanted to but conceptually equal. The forest around them was silent, so silent that Iwaizumi thought for a moment that the things around them were listening their interaction, holding their breath as Iwaizumi was currently doing. The whole world was waiting for a slightest sign from Oikawa to function again.

However Oikawa seemed just as dysfunctional as the rest of the world. Neither of them made a move to at least start walking again.

"I've heard some article about extraverts sympathizing with people quick and putting much more to them than they actually are. Thank you anyway, Hajime. Thanks, but it's just an illusion of me in your head, let's not put our trust in an illusion." with that, he pulled his hand from Iwaizumi's hold to rub his face, then to his own pocket. Iwaizumi's hand rolled in a fist, as if trying to keep Oikawa's warmth in there.

And that was Oikawa's answer. A subtle refusal. He was kind enough to thank him twice, but other than that, there was no emotion Iwaizumi could catch. He nodded slowly and started to walk.

There wasn't much to the ropeway and it was starting to get dark. They practically did nothing, as Iwaizumi planned but yet again there was much more action than he expected in the first place. After sitting for a while in peace, they danced to few songs. Later on, Oikawa climbed up a tree and demanded Iwaizumi to take his photos as he was the king of the forest with the blanket around his shoulders. While getting down from the branch, Oikawa tripped on the blanket and started to roll downwards toward Iwaizumi. They laughed their lungs out, and of course Iwaizumi recorded every single second of it. After that, they walked around the lake, sat again for some time and now they were going back.

It was one of the best days Iwaizumi had had for a long time. Despite the cold, they managed to enjoy themselves. Besides, Oikawa was very clingy, leaving no room for the cold, let alone the fact that they hold hands almost all day long until this very moment.

They didn't wait for an empty cabinet this time, getting in the first one they saw. There was a girl sitting on one corner with a huge book in her lap. Iwaizumi sat to the other corner in front of the girl, and Oikawa settled next to him with a loud huff.

"This cold makes me sleepy."

"You can sleep until we reach the busses." he suggested and Oikawa agreed with a tired nod of his head and a yawn.

Instead of using Iwaizumi as a pillow which would please him to no end, Oikawa crossed his arms and throwing his head back, started to breath slower and slower. After watching the dork drift to sleep, Iwaizumi pulled a blanket out and carefully laid it on Oikawa's motionless form.

He caught the girl looking and whispered ever so quietly so as not to wake Oikawa up."I have another extra blanket if you want?"

The girl blinked a few times and smiled gently, "Thank you very much, It's fine this way."

His eyes travelled down to the book in the girl's lap and couldn't hold his question back. "Are you studying organic chemistry?"

The girl, too, glanced at the book and answered excitedly although they were still whispering. "Yes, it's my first year."

"I have a friend in his last year in there, that's cool." said friend was Kuroo Tetsurou, aka daydream of the whole population on their campus.

"It's cool, too. My name's Yachi by the way." the girl held out her hand to Iwaizumi.

He took the hand offered, "Nice to meet you, I'm Hajime."

Something tickled Oikawa's nose and he made a wry face. It was strangely warm and suitable for sleeping but presumably it was the source of this heat that tickled him and woke him up. He was about to open his mouth to cry out and whine but whispering he heard made him shut up. He peeked open one of his eyes and saw Iwaizumi and the girl across him shake with silent laughter.

An odd feeling was boiling up in Oikawa when he mindlessly snuggled closer to Iwaizumi and settled down on his shoulder, pretending to be asleep. However, the feeling did not stop, he was about to lose his temper, it was his fault that they took this cabinet in the first hand. With every intention to give the wrong idea, Oikawa nuzzled his face into the crook of Iwaizumi's neck while giving out a hearty sigh and mumbling a sleepy "Hajime."

He smirked under his blanket when he heard the girl gasp and Iwaizumi tense. _It's what you get when you come near to my Iwa-chan._ He was being unfair, Oikawa knew but today was theirs, wasn't it? For today, he was going to let himself be territorial, be a little possessive of Hajime. There wasn't much left though, after this and taking the bus, their time was coming to an end.

Taking in the scent of Iwaizumi, selfishly, he justed his means because with this position he was also giving Iwaizumi a chance to be close, which the latter took absentmindedly when he snaked his arm around Oikawa's waist and pulled him closer. Oikawa was aware that it was not the same chance Iwaizumi asked for earlier. He took Oikawa by surprise by his little speech about _his_ Oikawa, who was not even a distant relative to Oikawa himself.

Iwaizumi knew nothing about him, just a few lucky interpretations. Not just a few, okay, Iwaizumi was damn good at spotting the things about Oikawa but it was out of the pure luck. His last point was wrong, to give an example, Oikawa was not perfect as Iwaizumi claimed him to be. He didn't want to be perfect anymore, he was running away from everything that called for being perfect. Oikawa got enough hurt from the world until now and had no intention to keep on damaging himself more.

"It's not what you think." Iwaizumi's whispering took him out of his thoughts and made him laugh evilly at his mind again.

"It's okay..." Oikawa couldn't catch what the girl said in between "...he is cute."

"Indeed he is..." he agreed and Oikawa's breath hitched. "He has the worst personality though." Iwaizumi added.

The girl giggled, making Iwaizumi giggle too but under the cover of that happy image, Oikawa felt Iwaizumi tense and tighten his hold on Oikawa, to the point of hurting his side.

When he heard the duo exchange their goodbyes, Oikawa understood that they arrived the last stop. He didn't get up directly though, he was pretending to be asleep, remember? Iwaizumi sighed and pushed Oikawa away while standing up.

"I know you've been awake all that time." his voice was cold, even colder than that December night out.

"Hmm? What do you mean Iwa-chan?" Oikawa mumbled but he was almost able to see the rage radiating off of Iwaizumi.

"What's with you Oikawa, what exactly do you want from me?" he begged, but his eyes were sparkling dangerously with anger.

Oikawa stood up and started to fold the blanket without saying anything.

"You're acting like you haven't just rejected me…" not waiting Iwaizumi to finish his sentence, Oikawa made his way out from the cabin, the shorter following him behind.

"Besides, we were having a friendly conversation until you literally put your nose in it. It is my fucking decision to talk with whomever I want."

Oikawa stopped abruptly and turned back to look directly into Iwaizumi's face. He was planning to take whatever Iwaizumi threw at him but no. Not this one. "You can't."

Iwaizumi, too, stopped, now they were facing each other. "Huh?"

"You can't talk to just anybody." Oikawa stepped closer to Iwaizumi, like there were miles between them and couldn't hear each other. "You can't have friendly conversations either, I am your date today, which means you're mine."

Oikawa knew he sounded like a psychopath but didn't mind it. A rejection didn't mean that they were done, they were still together until the end of the day. It was his stupidity to feel jealous, he was overreacting with no right over it, but it was all Iwaizumi's fault, letting Oikawa watch his laugh, letting all his charm out, which Oikawa appreciated only when they were alone together.

"That's stupid, you're stupid, I'm not taking any of your shit."

"Like it or not, those are the consequences of taking me out." Oikawa hissed as a reply and this time he reached for Iwaizumi's hand, interlacing their fingers together in a strong hold.

Without waiting Iwaizumi to say a thing or do, Oikawa pulled him towards the bus station. If he was to loosen his hold on the other hand, it would tremble uncontrollably so he tightened even more, and felt Iwaizumi's strong grip back. His fingers were hurting, they were both stupid but there was this promise Oikawa gave to himself, saying that he'd enjoy Iwaizumi's presence before all this magic breaks.

Their fingers stayed interlaced although they did not speak a word throughout the way back to the station where they first met. It was crowded due to it being a weekend, but they managed to find themselves two seats and as though they hadn't been already sitting for hours, they sat down again. People passed, entire station changed except for them. Oikawa could not make out how long they stayed there, not even remembering their last words to each other. There was no need either, what was going on in their heads was obvious, it was the reason why they both avoided forming a word.

"Let's go." said one of them, it was not important. They made no move for leaving.

Oikawa felt bad, for breaking Iwaizumi, for not enjoying more of the day, for not being enough. He was glad that someone like Iwaizumi appreciated him, even considered Oikawa as a someone special in his life.

Iwaizumi loosened his death hold on Oikawa's hand and Oikawa turned to look at his face. He was looking tired, lips in a thin line, tip of his nose and ears red. His green eyes were boring into him, Oikawa couldn't dare to look directly at them.

"Can't we stay longer, Iwa-chan?" he asked desperately. Iwaizumi shook his head negatively while slowly standing.

"Even a little?" Oikawa tried to pull Iwaizumi back but could not.

"No, get up."

He, too, got up and stood in front of Iwaizumi, not even bothering to check his clothes or hair or his belongings. Inner Oikawa was long gone, kicking his official self in the face. He coughed and forced a smile on his face, at least he could do this for Iwaizumi.

"I'm really glad that we met today."

Iwaizumi returned his smile with an equally forced one "Yes, thanks for coming."

Oikawa pulled Iwaizumi's hood up for millionth time that day, finally letting go of the hand. "Treat yourself well, Iwaizumi."

His hands fell to his sides and Oikawa was about to turn on his heel when he heard Iwaizumi's voice.

"Oikawa let me…" he was looking at Oikawa expectantly, waiting any kind of approval, and Oikawa gave him a small nod.

He was expecting a kiss but rather Iwaizumi wrapped his arms around Oikawa's neck and buried his face right beneath his ear. They were pressed together, Iwaizumi holding Oikawa and mumbling unintelligible things, and Oikawa just standing there awkwardly.

The position went on like that for awhile, until they no longer felt the cold, until Iwaizumi's hot breath and lips tickled Oikawa and he flinched instinctively, which caused Iwaizumi to let go of him.

"Sorry, I get carried away easily." Iwaizumi scratched back of his neck nervously.

"Iwa-chan it wasn't-"

Iwaizumi cut him off "Don't forget trying to sleep under your books." with that, he turned his back and walked away, waving his hand.

"You don't forget to treat them kindly, Iwa-chan!" Oikawa called behind him and although the other couldn't see, he waved too.

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _what do you mean you're done with him_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _what have you done_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _here we have oikawa tooru_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _aka dumbest devil in all existence._

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _i'll have to join you in there honey_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _you can join me everywhere you please sweetie_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Guys stop it._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I said it earlier, it is fun to talk with him_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _and hang out_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _and sleep?_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Shut up Mattsun, I'm tryin to reason myself here_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _I'll stalk him all my life_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _He's my crush_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _don't you say so_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Ha ha_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Whatever, he deserves the best, not me._

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Look at me, I'm an aging alien king._

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _so you damned him_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _that's your ultimate solution_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _lejd valdsman!_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Makki what did we talk about using Swedish in the group chat?_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _same here sunshine_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _what the hell you guys always talk in latin here_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _my swedish shouldn't be much deal, compared to your dead lang_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _you mummies_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _latin is the mother of all languages_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Latin is the language of love_

 ** _Hanamaki:_** _don't you dare to speak of love oiks_

 ** _Oikawa:_** _Makki…_

 ** _Matsukawa:_** _apply cold water to burned area tooru!_

It had been two days since Oikawa came home from their date. He slept through an entire day, without talking to anyone or checking to see if there was any messages from Iwaizumi, there he was sure, was nothing. It was monday and he had classes to join. And a life to live, supposedly. Almost two days sleep helped him to stay away from thinking unnecessary things, or prevent the sadness that might come, Oikawa was waiting same distracting performance from his classes too.

That was the plan but life does not always cope up with your plans. There was little but yet again too much time in his day where he was left alone with his thoughts and it was unbearable.

He did not quite remember how his life was before Iwaizumi, what he was thinking before Iwaizumi, to whom Oikawa was talking to all day before him. Glancing at his books, he sighed, even the damn books reminded him of Iwaizumi.

Flustrated, he got off from where he was lying and saw Shakespeare smirk at his grief.

"Not you too Shakes."

The smirk was still there.

"I thought you were my friend."

No change.

"Okay, laugh at my misery, smirk all you want!" he pulled his tongue out and opened his laptop.

It was his true best friend, look, it was even welcoming him. "See, William, some are still by my side." Oikawa too smirked at the portrait.

A sound made him pay attention to his screen. An error sound, with a message in at least 72 punto, 'Something Happened.' His eyes widened with horror, what the hell was going around him.

"None of your business, computer!" Oikawa cried out and skipped the message. Logging in his facebook and tumblr account, he started to remember about his life. _I'm a worm._

Tumblr literally sucked his three hours without him noticing. He unwillingly closed that sinner tab and before getting up to prepare for school, checked Facebook too. There was nothing important, other than the freak duo's posts, which he bombarded with humiliating comments. Neither Matsukawa nor Hanamaki had facebook account, so it was boring. They were viners, much to Oikawa's amusement. He scrolled down some more and a post took his attention.

 ** _Iwaizumi Hajime_** _feeling excited with **Anil Sarkar, Chandra Munjal** and **4 others** at **Hard Rock Cafe India.**_

Oikawa gaped like a fish at the post, he left this guy only for two days and he was already half a world away. "You weren't feeling like going two days ago…" he mumbled and clicked the other profiles to see if there was any photograph but no. There was not.

Disappointed, he got up and changed his clothes, brushed his teeth, put his contacts on and left his apartment with a slam of the door, hoping that it would imprison the bitter feelings in his chest inside the house.

Iwaizumi jumped into the only bed in the room he was staying in with two other friends "I'm taking the bed tonight guys, sorry for you."

"But it's pointless, you're not even sleeping properly." his friend complained.

"Yeah, I saw you on your phone last night, four hours after we've gone to sleep." his other friend added.

"I didn't say anything about sleeping in the bed." Iwaizumi snapped back and groaned loudly when he finally took off his shoes.

There was nothing left of him after trying to keep up with the activities of his India squad. He was planning to deny their offer but thanks to certain someone, there was no reason to reject it. After returning to the dorm from their meeting with Oikawa, Iwaizumi called his friends, asking if the offer was still there and got off with the first flight he found. Their plan was actually to meet in Singapore a week after but Iwaizumi couldn't wait, did not want to wait so long alone, so he first went to India instead. It had been a week in India, a week without any trace of the alien. They would continue their tour from there on to Singapore for a week and then back to Japan. He had enough money for the trip, and it was a great distraction. They gave Iwaizumi five songs to practice and sing along with them, and three additional songs for him to go solo. It was okay with him, he needed to get rid of all Oikawa left in him.

Though it was not possible, if possible, it was not easy. No matter how hard he tried to keep himself busy, he _was_ busy but Oikawa was worming inside his head. Maybe Iwaizumi was exaggerating about him in his mind, but it was hard to not to get close to his phone to check if there was any message, it was hard to keep his mind off of that idiot, of his equally idiotic words.

Those words were unreal for him, a proper refusal was something different. When you refuse someone, you tell them their thoughts or feelings are not mutual and a whopping no. Oikawa, too, refused something but it was not Iwaizumi. Oikawa was refusing to open himself to Iwaizumi, refusing to tell his feelings or what was going on in his nerd brain. In this situation, Iwaizumi knew forcing all of them out was an option but not a one he'd prefer. He wanted Oikawa to be honest with him on his own consent, not with a push.

Yet again, he couldn't hold himself off from looking at their messages, and the dumb video he recorded. It made Iwaizumi smile every time he watched it, and made him wish that they could replay that day again and again until he got sick of it, despite all the unpleasant parts of it. As long as they were together, nothing mattered for Iwaizumi, he underlined it for Oikawa too.

Shaking his head, Iwaizumi kicked his friends who were trying to get him off of the bed and allowed his internet connection. Nothing happened in whole week and actually he was not expecting anything from the rest.

As if proving him wrong, his ears caught a notification sound and Iwaizumi let his friends push him off while holding his phone like his life depended on it. He landed on the floor with a loud huff and opened the mail, which came from the same address that messaged him a month ago, with same greeting.

 _Hello, Iwaizumi._

 _Aren't you getting enough sleep under your books anymore? What about those horrible hula hoops under your eyes? If it's me, I'm allowing you to sleep under them. Just don't fold the corners. Besides, I'm glad that you finally found your scarf, it looks good on you. We're trying to create a peace with Inner Oikawa, and it was his idea to send you a message, take care!_


End file.
